Take Shape
by tesselation
Summary: Amelie 'Lee' Bohman sought them out to be with people like herself. They let her stay because she filled a void. Post First Class, AU, Charles/OC.
1. Prologue

This is probably going to be so AU it wont even be funny. All I know of this world is what I've gather from the movies and when I watched X-Men: Evolution when I was 12.

How will it be AU? The end of First Class is void. Or parts of it. Ok, just the part where Charles became wheel-chair bound.

Bare with me, and if/when I make some unforgivable mistake please point it out.

So without further delay, this is the prologue. The actual story probably won't pick up until the chapter after next.

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><p>Her appearance in their lives was unexpected.<p>

Coming off of the feeling of betrayal and abandonment, the group was wary of new blood. Especially her's. They were so alike. Some held the hope that she would fill the void that he had left, others avoided attachment in the fear that they were too similar and she would leave in the same fashion as him; leaving them in vulnerable shock, at the most inconvenient time, in the most hurtful of ways.

The similarities were uncanny. Especially due to how soon she came after he left. It was almost as if he had walked out, gone on holiday, and returned as a whole new person after the whole ordeal.

However alike the two seemed, though, they were completely different where it counted. Where he was cruel, she was patient. Where he was full of hate, she was full of understanding and apprehensive hope.


	2. I

This ought to pick up soon. Perhaps next chapter? We'll have to wait and see. Though it's already started so I suppose just you will have to wait and see, as I already know.

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><p>Spontaneity was not natural to Lee. Each and every decision in her life, up until the development of her mutation, had been calculated to the very last detail. Change was not something she dealt with easily, up until the biggest change of her life. Everything had been stable, practically set in stone.<p>

However, one week before her commencement ceremony from university, she mysteriously prevented an unaware bicyclist from meeting an unfortunate collision with a stray child. Able to see the situation clearly from her spot on the walkway, she could make out perfectly that the child was in the direct path of an unaware cyclist speeding onward. In a wild gesture, Lee threw out a hand and yelled for the man on the bicycle to stop. He certainly did stop, when his bicycle was yanked out from underneath him and sent flying in to the air, and into a tree.

Lee's scream cut short. Only she and the cyclist seemed to be aware of the situation, as the child was now blissfully and ignorantly skipping away from the scene. Had she propelled the bicycle into the air? Of course not! That was impossible, inconceivable! That would require magical abilities, which Lee had none of. She made up some rational excuse as she continued on her way, acting as if nothing had ever happened. But when she got back to her flat, she felt free to analyze the event.

Memories of struggling with locked doors came to her first. When she was younger, she was prone to forgetting her keys. She could remember twisting the doorknob hopelessly, finding the darned thing locked. Of course she would try futilely to turn and turn again, not expecting it to unlock, yet, somehow it always did. She blamed it on faulty craftsmanship. Even though she had gone through at least three locks.

She then remembered how just last Christmas, she was helping her aunts in the kitchen. She was chopping who knows what, when she got distracted and dropped the knife. It should have hit her foot. It should have resulted in a trip to the hospital and a few stitches. Yet somehow on its path downwards, it was directed a little to the right, completely missing her foot.

Little memories like that trickled into her thoughts in the following week of the bicycle incident. Graduation came and went, and she was still battling the idea that she herself had moved the bicycle, the knife, the locks.

Lee struggled for almost a year to comprehend what exactly had happened. She would brush it off as nothing, try to forget about it, and go on with her life. After all, she had much more to worry about. She had her work, though part-time and unfulfilling, her family, her friends, her boyfriend turned fiancé.

It was early on a Saturday morning in the flower district getting ideas for her wedding when she overheard an extraordinary story of a man who could heal a fatal wound almost as soon as it was inflicted. The man telling the story called him a strange word that Lee had heard very few times. He called the more than likely fictional man a mutant.

Lee carried on with her errand, brushing off the man's story as just that. She had a wedding to plan! Flowers to buy! She had no time for such fantasy.

And yet, it seemed after that story, she heard more and more similar to it. All of seemingly normal people with strange abilities.

It was a week before her own wedding that Lee became sure that she was indeed like the people she heard of in the streets. She was a mutant.

The stability in Lee's life vanished after her realization. Her once solid foundation suddenly became terrifyingly fluid. How could she marry someone when she had become so unsure of who she was? It didn't seem right. If she didn't know who she was, then her poor fiancé certainly wouldn't have a clue. Scared of her family's tolerance, or lack of, of her mutation practically ran Lee out of town, and ultimately out of the country.

Newly settled in London, Lee began to experiment. She had no job, no friends, no fiancé, nobody to dictate her use of time. She was free to spend it as she pleased. And she desperately wanted to know what was going on.

Lee already knew that she could unexplainably, impossibly move things without touching them. The bike, the lock, the knife. Since those happenings, she found herself moving a coin, hairpins, the lid to a tin of cookies. Each incident had been without intent. So Lee became determined to deliberately move an object She sat down at the table in her cheap, one-roomed, London flat with a powder brush in front of her. She focused on it for what seemed like hours. Nothing. No results. She exchanged it for something smaller. Another hairpin. She found with great glee that she could indeed lift it from the table a few inches. An hour later, she had shot it across the room, into the wall. Though, not on purpose. Control was difficult in the beginning.

Eager to test this power, Lee attempted to move a grape from the bowl on the counter. Again, she stared at the vine fruit for several agonizingly long moments with no results. Though, a spoon in the sink shot up into the air and clattered noisily onto the floor. It took several days and many more practice sessions to figure out that Lee's power was limited to metal.

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><p>Well, that seems familiar... Care to comment on it?<p> 


	3. II

Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed!

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><p>Years after the delightful discovery of her control over metallic objects, Lee heard tell of a group of mutants. She had knowingly met several mutants between her humble beginning as one herself in the London flat, and through her travels since then. A few years prior to the stirring of this rumor, she had heard of another group of mutants. They had a sinister name, and a questionable motive. Lee avoided the group, despite her desire to find others like herself.<p>

Her time in London became Lee's self-discovery period. She taught herself to use her power, and with time it became easier and easier. It no longer took though to life a hairpin, they just floated from the dish on her vanity into her hair with ease. Cooking became a dream. At times, her kitchen would seem as though it were filled with a team of invisible chefs.

On one of her night's out, Lee heard another story of mutants. She had heard many over the years, but of individuals in humble settings. This story was unlike the others. Lee didn't keep up with current events, but she was well aware of the goings-on between the Americans and the Soviets. Everyone waited with baited breath for what seemed like months, preparing for a nuclear war. Lee's parents were among the paranoid masses and begged their only daughter to come home, mother was making preserves and father was looking into building a fallout shelter behind the tool shed in the back garden.

During the last war, Lee's home country had remained neutral to the best of its ability, but it had been obvious, even to a ten year old girl, that Sweden was surrounded by a war-torn Europe. But Lee remained hopeful that this current crisis would come and go just like all the others. She knew that no matter how deeply the world dug itself into the hole of war, somehow, it would right itself. And she knew that she wouldn't be any safer in little Malmӧ than she was in London.

And as she expected, the whole ordeal was suddenly over.

Through the limited mutant grapevine, as mutants are not very vocal or social, Lee learned of the real reason as to why the missile crisis was suddenly over- a group of mutants.

Lee was a social creature, and craved company that understood her. It seemed as though her fellow European mutants did not share her desires. So, Lee packed up her sparse flat and headed west, to America. She wrote quick letters to her family back in Malmӧ, containing a monstrous lie that she had received a job offer. She knew this story would be more favorable than running off to join a group of mutants because a) jobs were hard to come by for female literature majors, even with a degree from one of the most prestigious universities in Europe, and b) nobody had any idea that she was a mutant.

Lee had never flown on an airplane, but pushed aside her fear and looked toward the future. The very few mutants that Lee had known back in London were a far cry from friends. They were friendly acquaintances at best. Lee hoped with everything she had that this group that she knew virtually nothing about would receive her warmly. But she knew better than to be so naïve. This impulsive plan to simply meet mutants could potentially end very badly.

As the plane made its descent into New York City, the idea that her life could drastically change became very real. But first, she had to find the mutants. America was bigger than Lee initially thought.

Charles didn't know what exactly he was looking for. Yet he found himself visiting Cerebro more and more often. He had been out of the hospital for several months now, the bullet wound nicely healed. Lucky for him, the bullet had just barely missed his spinal cord. A few millimeters to the right and Charles would have been paralyzed from the waist down.

Charles knew that everyone thought he was searching for Erik. But he knew better than to seek him out. As if he could anyway. Besides, Erik was probably long gone.

If he was being completely honest, using Hank's invention gave him something to do. It allowed him to lose himself within the minds of others. Every so often he would find other mutants. None of them intrigued him, though. The 'X-Men', as Sean and Alex liked to jokingly call themselves, were not looking for any additions. Not so soon, at least.

However, the deep set feeling of betrayal and abandonment by both Erik and Raven left Charles feeling alone. He still had Hank, Sean, and Alex, but they were so much younger. They viewed him as their leader, their teacher. Sure Charles had a good relationship with each of them, but they were hardly the confidants he recently lost.

It was when Charles had become lost within these feelings that he first felt it. It was something very familiar. A mutant. The details were hazy, but the mutant seemed so familiar. Charles locked in on the location, and before he could stop to think about the situation, he found himself in the car, pulling off of the gravel drive and onto the street.

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><p>And to Zio: Oh heavens no! I don't think I would even have the stomach to write that! I'm pretty sure the film took place in '62, right? Idk. But all will be revealed soon enough. Thanks so much for the review!<p> 


	4. III

This would have been uploaded sooner, but life got in the way. Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!

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><p>The drive from the mansion to New York City wasn't terribly long. It allowed Charles to hone in on the mutant he was tracking. He knew the mutant was female. She was European, though he wasn't sure exactly where she was from. However, the closer he got to the city, the more he had to focus on his driving and the road.<p>

Lee stood awkwardly on the curb outside of the airport. It seemed as if everything around her was moving. She was used to traffic and chaos, but everything felt different in America. Shaking off the feeling of anxiety, Lee waved down a cab. She didn't know where exactly to go, so she requested for the drive to take her to a hotel.

Traffic had been worse than Charles had expected. He was only blocks away from the airport when the mysterious woman left. She was traveling in a cab. Charles swore loudly and pounded on the steering wheel. He tried to calm himself down to better focus on the situation. Traffic had slowed to a dead stop, so he took the opportunity to focus on her. She didn't know where she was going. The cab driver was taking her to a cheap hotel, quite far from the airport. The driver was cheating the foreigner.

The driver suddenly pulled over. Lee looked around, confused.

"I'm sorry, sir, I asked for a hotel," Lee said, peering out the window, looking up and down the street for any hotel signs. There was a drycleaners, a few restaurants, a travel agency, and a convenience store, but no hotels.

"Sorry, lady, this is as far as I can take you," said the driver. He sounded a unsure of himself, as if he was questioning himself. Lee frowned, but began pulling out money to pay the driver anyway.

"No charge, ma'am." He refused the money and helped her get her two bags out of the trunk, then left her on the curb. Lee couldn't help but find the man strange. If he didn't know where he was going, then he should have told her. Perhaps it was his first day, or he wasn't familiar with the area. Lee wasn't angry, just slightly frustrated. This trip wasn't getting off to a good start.

Controlling the mind of the cab driver wasn't a difficult feat for Charles. He wasn't very far away, and the poor man was fairly simple minded. It wasn't long before Charles could actually see the mutant woman. She was at a distance, but he knew for certain that she was the one he was looking for. As the traffic inched forward, Charles' mind began to race. What on Earth was he going to say to her? How would he explain himself? She was new to the country, it was very unlikely that she would trust him. A simple "Hello, my name is Charles Xavier and I've been following you all afternoon" just wouldn't do. He didn't want to scare her away.

Lee looked up and down the street, searching for another cab. Preferably one that knew where they were going. Traffic was bad, and Lee realized it would take her a while to find an empty cab. So, she shouldered her two bags and began to walk.

Charles swore for a second time that day as he watched the mutant woman pick her bags up off the sidewalk and start walking in the opposite direction of him. In this traffic, he would never catch up to her. She would get away. Of course, Charles could always just find her again. That was simple. But so much effort had already been put into this search that he wasn't simply going to give up. With his thinking clouded by the need to meet this mutant, Charles threw the car into park and shot out of the car. He ignored the honking and yelling, and began shouting himself.

As Lee was walking down the street, she couldn't help but notice the normal traffic noises increase. Car horns were blaring all up and down the street, people were rolling down their windows and shouting rude things. Curious, Lee looked around to see what had caused the ruckus. Perhaps there was an accident. Maybe someone got rear-ended, or cut off, or something more serious.

But no, all Lee could see was a man standing in middle of the street shouting himself. But it didn't seem like he was paying attention to the drivers around him. It seemed as if he was yelling in Lee's direction. Lee looked to either side of herself, and back at the man. She couldn't make out what he was yelling, but she was sure that he was trying to get her attention. She dropped one of her bags to the ground, and hesitantly raised a hand to point at herself in a questioning manner. She must have been right, because the man started nodding furiously. He waved, then held up one finger, as if asking her to wait a moment. He got back in the car, much to the relief of the other drivers.

'_Please stay there'_, Lee heard, though she wasn't sure where the voice came from. She followed instructions anyway.

It took several minutes for the man to reach her spot on the side of the street, but he had to go on a little ways to find a spot to park the car on the street. As he passed her, he waved and smiled. Lee hesitantly waved back. As he was parallel parking, Lee picked up the bag she had dropped earlier and walked towards the car and waited for the odd man to get out.

She hadn't been able to tell when he was making a scene in the middle of the street, but he was dressed nicely. He must have been a businessman of some sort, judging by the suit. Or so thought Lee. He even drove a nice car. As he approached her, she waited for him to make the first move.

Charles could feel the confusion and anxiety about the situation radiating off of the woman. Her eyebrows were knitted together, causing a few lines to form on her forehead. The corners of her mouth were turned down slightly. Her eyes were narrowed, looking him up and down, trying to gauge if he was a threat or not. He tried to smile warmly, in what he hoped was a welcoming gesture. Some of the worry seemed to lift from the woman's expression as he stuck out his hand.

"Sorry to cause a scene, but I needed to get your attention before you got away. My name's Charles," the man, Charles, said with a bit of a humorous tone. Lee took his hand hesitantly, wondering what exactly he wanted from her. Lee noted the English accent.

"I'm Lee," she said, unsure if she should give this man any more information. He seemed nice enough, but Lee knew better than to trust strangers so easily.

"I know you're probably really confused, but would you mind if we went somewhere a bit more quiet to talk?" Charles asked. Lee shrugged.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," she said, letting a nervous laugh slip. She couldn't help smiling.

"You can trust me, as creepy as that sounds," he laughed himself.

'_I'm like you,' _said the voice again. Only this time, Lee recognized it to belong to Charles. He watched as realization swept over Lee's face, washing away her doubt and leaving what he hoped was trust in its wake.

"So you are," said Lee, a wide smile forming on her lips.

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><p>Finally, some dialogue! And they meet!<p> 


	5. IV

Lee trailed after Charles as he led her to a bagel shop across the street. She wasn't exactly sure what a bagel was, but the store was quiet. There was one person behind the counter, with near-empty display cases. Looking around the tiny business, Lee guessed that bagels must have been a breakfast food. It was nearly half past four.

Charles offered to buy her a cup of coffee, or a bagel if she was hungry after her long flight. She declined, not quite sure if she could stomach anything. Her flight hadn't been particularly turbulent, but the experience as a whole had been rather jarring.

Charles couldn't believe that he had found the mutant he discovered mere hours ago, although it felt like nearly a week had passed. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so eager to find this woman, and before he knew it, he was standing in the middle of the street practically screaming at her. The scene was very out of character for Charles, but his fit of desperation worked. He had gotten her attention, he had gotten her to agree to talk to him.

No, Charles did know why he had been so hell-bent on finding this mutant. He just didn't want to admit it to himself. From afar, she seemed so like Erik. He hadn't actually witnessed it, but her mutation was almost exactly like Erik's. She was quiet. Not shy, no. She was the type to keep control of the situation. There were the obvious similarities, too. Tall, pale, dark brown hair.

As Lee sat across the table from Charles, she became uncomfortable. He had a tendency to stare, it seemed. He was studying her face, as if he was trying to make up his mind about something. He must have noticed her discomfort because he shook his head slightly and straightened up in his chair, as if he had snapped back from a daydream.

"So you're a telepath. That makes me a little nervous," Lee said, followed by a nervous chuckle. Charles smiled.

"I wouldn't invade your privacy, if that's what you're scared of." Charles smiled, which comforted Lee. He was charming. His smile was charming. Lee got the feeling that he was a bit of a lady-killer.

"So then, why make a fool of yourself in the street?" Lee was glad to have met a mutant so soon, but never had she been greeted in such a way.

A slight frown flashed across Charles' face as he considered his answer.

"I sensed another mutant in the area, and what I felt reminded me of friend of mine," he finally decided on an answer.

"You must be stronger than you look," said Lee with a smirk, causing Charles to chuckle once.

"Normally I'm not, but another friend of mine helped me project my range."

"Also a mutant?" Lee asked, a bit hopeful. Charles nodded.

"Yes, I live with him, and two others." He couldn't help but notice how hopeful she was, and how the feeling of excitement flooded her mind. He wasn't even trying to read her mind and he could feel clear as day.

"I can't say that I've ever met another person like us, who was nearly as friendly as you. You American mutants tend to stick together, don't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember last October, that ordeal off the coast of Cuba? I heard mutants were involved in that. Some group of mutants against another. That's actually why I came here." Charles was shocked to hear that people knew what really happened on that beach. That mutants were involved. He thought the government buried that secret almost as soon as it happened. And then he couldn't help but wonder which side she was looking for. She didn't seem like the militant mutant, but it wouldn't be the first time he misjudged someone in that way.

He, Hank, Alex, and Sean had been laying low for months, ever since Cuba. Charles wish he could say the same for Erik and the Hellfire Club, but he had no clue what they were up to. The last he heard, Erik rescued the telepath Emma Frost from the CIA. After that, it was as if the group disappeared. He tried to locate them once, right after he was released from the hospital. It was a moment of weakness, most likely aided by heavy painkillers, and the sour feeling of betrayal.

Charles was staring at her again, though his eyes seemed vacant, as if his mind was miles away. She still felt uncomfortable.

"Do you know something I don't?" She asked, desperate to get the conversation started again, to end the awkward silence. Charles sighed deeply and nodded. She didn't know exactly why, but Lee got the feeling that he knew quite a bit.

"Were you… were you there?" She asked hesitantly. The look on his face said it all. "And to think I almost took a later flight that flew into D.C.!" She clapped her hands and laughed.

Lee had come to America with very little hope. She knew it was a huge country, with millions and millions of people, and who knows how many mutants. The chance of her finding what she was looking for was very slim. The agonizingly long flight had left her in a bad mood, and the strange cab driver had Lee questioning the entire trip. And yet there she was, sitting in a restaurant with one of the very mutants she had hoped to meet, not even two hours after her plane landed.

Charles just had to know. Ethics be damned. He needed to know where exactly she stood. Just as he was about to enter her mind, she spoke again.

"I don't really know what happened, you know. All I've heard is bits and pieces. Nobody really knows. I know mutant involvement basically stopped a nuclear war. Unofficially, that is. And something about two groups." Charles could sense the truth. She really didn't know much about what happened.

"Do you need a place to stay?" He asked.


	6. V

Thanks for reading and reviewing!

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><p>Charles didn't think he had asked anything inappropriate, but the look on Lee's face had him thinking that he somehow offended her. He had been dying to listen in on her thoughts all day, and he was about to when her expression changed.<p>

Charles' question surprised Lee. It caught her off guard. She had just met this man. He seemed trustworthy enough. And he said he lived with other mutants. That was what had Lee seriously considering going with the man sitting in front of her. She had found what she was looking for. She should have been happy it happened so fast.

But how easily she found other mutants had Lee concerned. It was too easy. There had to be something, some sort of cosmic catch. She had a feeling that if she took this opportunity, she would somehow pay for it late. Yet, she wanted to go so badly. What was the worst that could happen? She was capable. She could protect herself. She was surrounded by things she could use as weapons. The metal table legs, the metal chairs, the ventilation system running through the walls and ceiling, the silverware, the appliances behind the counter. Charles was even wearing a watch. His belt buckle could be used against him if she needed it.

Charles finally gave in. He listened in on her inner debate. Her thoughts were amusing. He tried to hide a smile with his hand as she contemplated the different ways she could kill him if he turned out to be less than favorable. It was when she was wondering if he had any metal fillings in his teeth that he had to stop her. He was on the verge of laughing out loud.

"I promise you, if I do anything you don't like, feel free to kill me with my watch, or rip the fillings from my mouth. Though, there's only two," he said, as he tapped the left side of his jaw, pointing out where they were located.

Lee would have been upset that he had been reading her thoughts, but she was distracted by her confusion. She hadn't sensed his fillings. She hadn't even thought of that. But she agreed to go with Charles anyway. Fillings or not, she had even more ammo in the car.

He helped her with her bags to the car. He smiled as he dropped in on her thoughts again. She was reminding herself that cars were different in America. Don't get in on the wrong side and look like a fool in front of cute mutant, she told herself. Charles was pleased to hear she thought he was cute, though he was hoping for something a bit more masculine.

Traffic had only gotten worse during their time in the bagel store. They sat in silence through most of the ride. Lee stared out the window, taking in the city as Charles focused on not rear-ending the car in front of him as it was crawling along at a snail's pace. When the situation called for it, Charles would blare the horn, in a true New York fashion, but Lee never paid attention. It didn't seem to bother her. Charles gathered that she was very easy going. The traffic didn't appear to bother her as much as it did him. He was practically furious, as they were not at a stand-still, and there she was, blissfully staring out the window. He took the opportunity to listen to her thoughts again.

"I just remembered that you're a telepath. I probably shouldn't be thinking about personal things," she said suddenly, not even looking away from her window. Charles feared he had been caught, but went along with it anyway.

"What kind of personal things?" he asked playfully. He would have denied any flirtatious undertones, but it had been a while since he had a good flirt. In fact, it seemed as though he was in the middle of a good and long dry spell.

"Oh you know, bank account numbers, where I keep my cash and valuables, things like that," she said. He could tell it was a joke, but Charles still felt slightly guilty. Only slightly, though.

"I wouldn't rob you. I'm not sure what I would do with your grandmother's antique diamond earrings you've got stashed in your socks in the green duffel bag," he said. Lee finally turned her head from the window.

"You know, this is a nice car. It would be a shame if anything happened to it," she said, a smile on her lips. He knew she was teasing, though Charles grew concerned anyway. A terrible sound alerted Charles' attention to the hood of his car, which was slowly crunching itself in, like an accordion. He knew she was only teasing, but the current state of his car and the stares he was gaining from the other drivers on the road unnerved him. Before he could say anything, the hood was smoothing itself out, and soon enough it was as if nothing had happened. She was more powerful than he had first guessed, but he doubted she had met her full potential yet. He was eager to see just what exactly she could do.

Lee's display of power must have had some effect on the other drivers, as traffic was starting to let up. They were moving again.

"We're leaving the city," Lee noted, looking out the window as signs flew by. Charles nodded.

"I have a place not far from here. You'll like it," he said, smiling.

Once completely outside of the city, Charles was able to drive at a normal pace. Lee actually noticed that he drove above the speed limit, though not dangerously so. They spent the time talking. She asked about Cuba, and he told her what he was comfortable talking about. He was able to tell her a little about Division X without revealing too much. He told her of the CIA needing help to counter another mutant, Sebastian Shaw. Lee wasn't sure if she knew who Charles was talking about. She knew many Sebastians, but none met this man's description.

He told her of how he and a friend gathered up mutants. He told her about Hank, Sean, and Alex, and how they would be at their destination. Lee learned of how they used Charles' childhood home as a base, and were currently living there. Lee couldn't help but wonder if he grew up in New York, how he managed an English accent. She assumed his parents passed it along.

"Do your parents mind you living in the house with a bunch of mutants?" Lee asked, trying to phrase the question in a way that both asked if they were around and if they knew he was a mutant. She was curious about how his parents reacted to him being a mutant, as she never had that experience. Not a sole from Lee's childhood knew she was a mutant. She wasn't terribly ashamed of what she was, but she feared their reactions. She didn't want to be treated any differently. So she hid herself from them, and left. It was easier to separate herself from her family than to hide in her own home.

The drive became more and more scenic. The city gave way to a small town, and then farmland and trees. It was peaceful. It wasn't long until Charles pulled into a gated driveway. Before he could roll down the window to punch in the code to open the gate, it was moving on its own. He turned to Lee, who was smiling at him.

"I can be helpful," she said simply, and Charles drove up the path. The house was impressive, though Lee didn't think the word "house" could be used in this building's case. It was an estate. A massive estate.

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><p>Not much comparison to Erik in this chapter, but more will come. They can't be exactly alike, in terms of mutation, can they?<p> 


	7. VI

Lee's first night in the mansion with the other mutants hadn't been what she expected. She had in mind war veterans with gruesome scars with equally gruesome stories, not a group of teenagers. Charles was the oldest of them all. When Lee met him, he didn't' exactly strike her as a leader. He took charge of some situations, but for the most part, he seemed rather introverted. He seemed to have a lot on his mind, a lot of inner demons. To put it bluntly, he was troubled. Lee wasn't sure by what, exactly, but if she was anything, she was curious. Curiosity seemed to rule Lee's life now.

Charles watched the new house guest all night. She ate dinner with the group, and he tried desperately to stay out of her mind, but she was much too interesting to keep out. He loved hearing her thoughts on certain things. She got along well with the others, and her thoughts on them, on the group, and on himself fascinated Charles. She took to Hank and Alex nicely, though Sean was a bit of a stretch. She related to Alex, they were both quiet, observant types. Hank's appearance didn't frighten her. She found Sean to be a bit immature, but who didn't?

Charles was a bit apprehensive to find out what she thought of him, though. He wanted to know so badly, but the thought of it being bad made him wary. What if she didn't like him? What if he had been too forward? Before he could psyche himself out, Charles delved into her thoughts, searching for something about him.

Though, Charles didn't like what he heard. He should have stayed out of her mind, but curiosity got the better of him.

It seemed curiosity got the better of Sean, too. "What exactly can you do?" He asked Lee after dinner.

Without even considering the question, Lee used her power to manipulate anything she could. Hank's glasses floated off of his face, Charles' watch tugged at his wrist and pulled his hand into the air, some coins flew out of Alex's jeans pocket, a pair of candlesticks floated up off of the mantle, and a ring from Lee's hand floated into the air. The objects swirled around Sean's head a few times (minus Charles' watch), and returned to their original positions. Sean looked around, impressed.

"Can you lift me up?" He asked excitedly.

"Only if you're made of metal," she laughed. Charles had been afraid that she would say something like that. He didn't know why, though. He knew very well that she was not Erik. However, he still worried that the others wouldn't be so understanding.

All eyes were on Lee. Everyone sat in stunned silence, though Charles shifted his weight from one foot to the other uncomfortably. Poor Lee didn't know what she had said or done wrong. If the others could be so comfortable sitting in a room with a very furry, very blue man, then they should have no problem with her mutation.

"What did you say your name was?" Hank asked, breaking the silence.

"Amelie Bohman, but just call me Lee," she answered reluctantly. She didn't understand why that was a relevant question. Hank considered her answer briefly before questioning her further. "Where are you from?"

"Born and raised in Malmӧ, Sweden. Though, I spent the last three years in London. And I lived in Lund while I was at university," she answered easily. Lee guessed he was just trying to learn more about her. She had no idea that she was being compared to someone else.

"There's no relation," Charles interjected, before Hank could ask anymore questions. Charles could sense Lee's unease and confusion at Hanks accusatory questions, and wanted to stop it before she got completely uncomfortable.

Lee could sense that something about herself was bothering Hank. Though, she wasn't sure what. She had been a kind and courteous guest. She had been polite to everyone. She didn't stare at Hank, she didn't do anything offensive. She assumed he was just hard to get along with. But Lee knew that if Charles liked him, then he was worth getting to know. She had known Charles for only a short while, about five hours, but she thought him to be trustworthy. Lee would have to trust that Hank just meant well. Though she wondered what exactly Charles meant by "there's no relations."

Charles gave Hank a meaningful look, and Lee assumed that he had said something to him telepathically. Though, Lee wasn't exactly sure if that fell under the umbrella of telepathy. She didn't know a good deal about mutations to begin with.

Hank dismissed himself, saying something about a lab. It didn't take long for Sean and Alex to get bored, and they turned on the television in the corner of the room.

"I can take you up to a room if you're tired. You've had a long day, I'm sure you're exhausted from your traveling," Charles offered. Lee smiled and nodded, following him out of the room. Charles went to the foyer, where he had left her bags earlier, and led her upstairs and down a hall.

Charles didn't have any clue where he was going to place Lee. The mansion had an abundance of spare rooms. However, he didn't want to put her all the way in some other wing of the house. His own room was surrounded by many others, but they were taken up by Alex, Sean, and Hank. There were two others, but he felt odd about putting her in Raven's old room, or the one Erik stayed in briefly. Raven's hadn't been touched since she left. All of her things were still in there. He stopped in the middle of the hall, unsure of what to do. Lee stopped with him, wondering what was the matter.

"I'm sorry, this room needs to be cleaned. You'll have to stay in another part of the house for tonight," he said, his voice sounded a bit distant. Lee could tell he was very deep in thought. He turned around and she followed him back the way they came. They passed the staircase and entered a new wing of the house. He opened the door to an old guest bedroom that hadn't seen a guest in ages. It was near his parents' old room, yet another room he didn't feel comfortable going in.

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><p>So this chapter and the next few will be more action oriented. Please tell me if I'm sucking it up majorly. Or if I'm not.<p>

Also, why are there so few Charles or Erik fics that aren't Charles/Erik? I'll be the first person to admit that they had onscreen chemistry, but it was more of a 'best buddy, hey lets go get a round of beers and play some chess because we're friends' type of deal. Or maybe I just don't get it. It wouldn't be the first time.


	8. VII

This has a good deal of action, and a bit of Lee discovering why Hank doesn't like her very much, even though she hasn't pieced together the puzzle yet.

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><p>Charles dropped Lee's bags by the foot of the bed as she flicked on the bedside lamp. The room was large, as it was meant for his parents' important guests, back when they were still alive and able to entertain their important friends. Charles shook his head to rid himself of any childhood memories and turned to the new house guest.<p>

Lee was looking around the room, taking in her settings. He watched her until her eyes landed on him.

"This is a very nice house," she commented.

"It was my parents' home," he said simply.

"I was going to say that it didn't exactly seem like your style," she said with a small laugh.

"Well, I'll leave you alone. Make yourself at home. I suppose I'll see you in the morning," said Charles, shoving his hands into his pants' pockets and turning to leave.

"Thank you," she said before he could leave. "For everything." He smiled one last time and left her alone.

Lee didn't bother unpacking anything, though she changed from her jeans and blue button-down oxford into a grey t-shirt and black athletic shorts. Despite her long day, Lee didn't feel particularly sleepy. It was ten in the evening, and she didn't feel like going back downstairs to spend time with Alex and Sean.

So she poked around the room, opening drawers, examining trinkets on top of the dresser. She didn't find anything too interesting, just old clothes that she assumed previous guests had forgotten. There was a yellow men's polo shirt with an unsightly brown stain down the front of it. She found an old pair of socks in one of the top drawers of the dresser. There was an aging novel in the drawer of the bed side table, along with a pair of glasses missing a lens, and a pen that didn't work anymore.

In the closet Lee found a beautiful gown covered in sequins. She pulled it from the hanger and laughed at how huge it was. Three of herself could fit inside the gown, and Lee couldn't help but laugh at the thought of such a large woman wearing something so gaudy and attention grabbing. Lee didn't think that even she had the body for the dress to be flattering if it fit.

Growing bored of looking around the room, Lee took to reading the found novel. It was a dreadfully written romance novel. However, Lee had nothing better to do.

Around one in the morning, Lee got sick of the book and threw it down beside her on the bed. Though she used too much force and it landed with a 'thud' on the floor. She stood, stretching her legs and rolling her head around as to stretch her neck.

Desperate for a glass of water and a midnight snack, Lee quietly left her room. However, she remembered she was the only one in the wing and stopped her ridiculous tip-toeing and walked at a normal pace. She descended the stairs and tried to remember her way back to the kitchen. She took her time, though, taking in the furnishings of each room that she passed through. The whole house was, to be simply put, opulent. When she got to the kitchen, Lee made herself a piece of toast with a bit of jam and poured a glass of water. She took her snack on the go and continued exploring the dark house. Lee's exploration took her upstairs, to the wing housing the rest of the mutants.

She walked as quietly as she could manage, keeping in mind that they were probably all asleep. Lee remembered Charles telling her which rooms Sean, Hank, and Alex were in, and which was his own. Though the two empty rooms intrigued Lee. Unable to control her curiosity, Lee pushed open one of the empty rooms. She shut the door tightly behind her and turned on a lamp. It was much smaller than her own, and wasn't decorated quite as elegantly.

The bed was messed up, and a suitcase sat in the corner of the room, open. Lee set down her now empty glass of water on the tall dresser and moved towards the discarded suitcase. She bent down and pulled open the fabric of the bag to reveal some its contents. Lee saw only clothing. She tugged on a navy knit piece of fabric, which turned out to be a men's turtleneck sweater. She stuffed it back in the bag and stood. There was an orange leather briefcase on the desk. A wave of her hand and the latches shot open. She lifted the top half to find nothing but the black felt lining and a couple of papers. The papers were written on, but in German. Lee put them back, unable to read anything.

Lee looked around the room again. She wondered if the man who had been in this room was involved with what happened in Cuba. He must have been a mutant to be staying here. Curiosity getting the better of her again, Lee went back to the suitcase to learn more of this man. She rifled through the clothing until her fingers hit the cold hard metal of the barrel of a handgun. Her hand recoiled and she moved away from the bag. She used her power to manipulate the hardware on the dresser drawers to open and close them. All Lee could find was more men's clothing. The closet was empty, as were the bedside table drawers and desk. He must not have stayed long.

A faint sound reminded Lee that she was somewhere she wasn't supposed to be. The noise sounded like whoever was in the room next to the one she was currently in was up and moving around. Lee held out her hand and used her power to pull the chain of the lamp down, turning it off. She waited in the darkness until the noises stopped. She moved quietly to the door and pressed her ear to it. The door to the room to the right of the one she was in opened and she could hear footsteps going down the hall, towards the stairs.

Deciding it was time to leave, Lee willed the door open quietly, and shut it behind her. She ran down the hall as quietly as she could and stopped at the staircase to check that whoever had gotten up was gone. She could hear whoever it was coming back towards the stairs, and she ran for the other side and hid behind a large urn against the wall. She peered out to see Alex's back, returning to his room. Once he was inside, Lee returned to her own. She crawled into her bed and lay awake for another hour, contemplating everything that she had learned that day. There was much to consider.

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><p>Quite a major, and classic, character flaw. Curiosity killed the cat, as it were.<p> 


	9. VIII

It was early. Far too early for Charles' liking. However, he couldn't seem to will himself back to sleep that morning, so he got up. A quick extension of his mind told him that only Hank was up, and he was buried in his lab. He ran a hand through his hair and made his way downstairs, though he paused when he reached Raven's old room. Normally, before everything fell apart, they would have had breakfast together. But Charles pushed that out of his mind and carried on with his morning. Not feeling particularly hungry, he settled for a piece of dry toast and coffee. He walked around the house, eating what could hardly be called breakfast.

Charles decided that then was a good a time as any to clean out Erik's room for Lee. He didn't think she would like being stuck in an entire wing all by herself. Very well familiar with the feeling of being alone, Charles vowed he would do everything in his power to keep the new mutant from feeling that way.

Erik's room was simple to clean. He had only been in the mansion for a short week. Though Charles was still hesitant to touch anything. He stood in the doorway, surveying the room. The bed was unmade, a briefcase was on the desk, and Erik's only suitcase was in the corner of the room, opened with a sweater sleeve poking out.

Charles ripped the sheets form the bed and removed the pillow cases and threw the bundle on to the floor. He checked the closet and the drawers in the dresser and both bed side tables. He poked his head under the bed, just in case. Erik was the kind of person to hide something unsavory under the bed, and Charles didn't want to leave anything behind that would scare Lee. Charles moved to the desk. The drawers had random bits of office supplies in them, some blank papers, loose paperclips, a leaky fountain pen, and a roll of old stamps. Charles tried to open the briefcase, but it was locked.

Charles wasn't sure what to do with Erik's personal things, however few there were. His suitcase was small, and seemed to only hold clothing. A quick shake of the briefcase told him there were only papers inside, though he didn't know how important the papers were. Unsure, Charles took the bundle of used bedding downstairs to be washed later. On his way back up, he made a stop at the wing's linen closet and grabbed a fresh set of sheets.

While making the bed, Charles couldn't help but glance over at the suitcase in the corner every so often. It's not like he could send it to Erik; he had no idea where he was. When he was finished with the bed, Charles stood in the center of the room and stared down at the bag. It wasn't long until Alex was up, leaving his room which was next to Erik's. No, Charles had to stop calling it that. It no longer belonged to Erik. It was now Lee's room. That would take some getting used to.

Alex pushed open the slightly ajar door to see what was going on.

"Hey, I saw the door open and the light on. I was worried he came back," Alex said and chuckled a bit, standing next to Charles and looking around the room.

"I'm just getting it ready for our new guest," answered Charles, smiling a bit.

"Have fun." Alex clapped him once on the shoulder and left him alone again.

Charles decided that for now, he would just store Erik's bags somewhere. Perhaps a closet in a wing that nobody went into. He shoved the sleeve of the sweater back into the bag and forcefully zipped shut the bag. He picked it up and grabbed the briefcase from the desk. He passed by the dresser and noticed something he hadn't before- an empty glass. Charles frowned a bit at the thought of Erik leaving dishes in his room.

But Charles had been in the room before. It was several months before Lee's arrival, but he did not remember a glass being there, even then. He had visited the room while he was still healing. He was still on pain medication, and had limited mobility, requiring the use of a cane.

Charles could remember hobbling into the room late one night. He had woken up in excruciating pain, and popped a few of his pain pills. That night was fuzzy, and he probably ingested more than the recommended dosage. Charles remembered the pain in his back dissipating and making way for a whole new kind of pain, one that wasn't physical (most likely aided by the drug in his system). He had hobbled into Erik's room in search of answers. He would have gone into Raven's, for he had been infinitely closer to her, but her room was a bit too far away for him to make it without waking anyone up. It was a miracle that he got into Erik's empty room undetected that night.

Charles did his best to push that memory away, and got back to the task at hand. He was suddenly feeling very bitter and angry. There he was, cleaning Erik's room for him. What a great thing for a friend to do. He was cleaning the room of the man who took away the only person that resembled family and shot him in the back. He was tidying up after the man who left him on a beach with a bullet wound in the back that could have paralyzed him, and took his sister away.

Charles knew Raven was insecure, but he had no idea how deep it ran. He should have, though. They were family, and he had no bloody clue how she felt. He was blissfully unaware. Charles felt terrible that he couldn't comfort Raven, that he wasn't enough. Her exit from his life left him feeling inadequate. But then, why hadn't she tried to explain it to him? He would have listened. He always listened! He invited Raven into his home, she was part of his family. She was his only family, as far as he was concerned. And she threw that back in his face. Instead of working through how she felt, she took the easy way out and left with who Charles thought was his closest friend.

Unable to resist the feeling of scorn and contempt, Charles crossed the hall with Erik's bags, threw open the door to Raven's old room, and threw the bags into the corner. He slammed the door shut behind him, finding himself unable to be in that room any longer.

Charles returned to Lee's new room, retrieved the glass, and went to put it in the kitchen. Hank entered the kitchen just as Charles put the glass in the sink.

"Good morning!" Hank greeted him brightly. Charles turned to his friend, brows knitted together tightly, and a frown etched onto his face. Hank recoiled a bit at the sight of his friend in such a foul mood.

"I'm going for a run." Charles brushed past Hank and left the house through the back door. He needed to vent his frustration a bit before he could be sociable, or at least half way decent to the others in the house.


	10. IX

This, for some inexplicable reason, took me a while to write. Chalk it up to mere laziness. It was a refreshing 105 degrees today. And of course the pool had to be drained this past weekend. So inconvenient...

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><p>Lee didn't wake up until two in the afternoon, though she didn't feel fully rested. She woke up once around four in the morning for no reason, and another time when the sun came up. The room smelled musty and like it hadn't seen a soul in decades, which Lee guessed was true. Even after waking up, Lee stayed in bed for a good half hour. She stared up at the ceiling, thinking of her family, and the new situation.<p>

She still couldn't get over how quickly she achieved her goal, and how easy it had been. Not even an hour after getting off of the plane, she found exactly who she was looking for, even though she didn't know it at the time. Based on the previous night, Lee felt that she would get along well with the group of mutants. However, she wasn't exactly sure what they had in mind. Would they let her stay with them permanently? They certainly had the room to do so. Were they even looking for more mutants? Though, Lee knew they had to be, since Charles tracked her down. She remembered how crazed he looked when she first saw him in the middle of the street. She couldn't help but think that maybe he needed her. She wasn't sure how or why, but she resolved that she would help him with whatever he needed.

As Lee reluctantly got out of bed, for it was a very comfortable bed, her thoughts moved to her family. She hadn't spoken to anyone in ages and figured it was about time for a call. But first, she had to come up with a story to tell them. She would save that for later. First, Lee needed a shower. The smell of her hair reminded her of the airplane, which was a smell that Lee did not enjoy.

The bathroom connected to her room was very nice. Lee was worried that she would have to seek out towels, but she found quite a few in a cupboard. Lee didn't even think about shampoo and soup until she was already in the shower. There was an old bottle of a heavily fragranced shampoo covered in residue and an even filthier bottle of men's body wash. Having to make due, Lee used the products anyway. She would have to hunt something down before her next shower, though, because every time Lee's hair moved, a new wave of an obnoxiously nauseating strawberry scent hit her, and the rest of her smelled like a man. The combination was rather odd, and it didn't help that both scents were so strong.

Lee lounged about the room, letting her hair air dry. She pulled her toiletries kit out of one of her bags and rifled through it. She moisturized her face, and put on a bit of makeup. She pulled on a fresh pair of jeans and a white T-shirt and loose fitting navy V-neck sweater over it. She tore apart her bag, looking for a clean pair of socks and put on her last pair. She would have to do laundry later.

Lee sat on the bed, staring around at the room for a little while longer before she got up and gathered all of her things. She hoped she would get to move soon. In anticipation for that move, she relocated her two bags to by the door, and made the bed. It looked as if nobody had been there.

Hank was surprised to see Charles in such a bad mood that morning, especially after the night before. Charles seemed like he had been in such a good mood, like he had a little wind in his sails again. Hank couldn't help but notice how Charles looked at Lee. Though, he couldn't tell if it was because he was excited that his plan of turning the mansion into a school and safe place for mutants was finally starting to take shape, or if he was romantically interested in her. Hank couldn't blame his friend if it was the latter. The new mutant was beautiful.

However, the excitement of new blood didn't seem to last long for Charles. Hank warned Sean and Alex not to get in his way, or cause any trouble that day. Hank would have warned the new girl, too, but she had yet to emerge from her room. Though, Hank had a feeling that Charles wouldn't threaten to punish her like he would to the boys. No, Hank had a feeling that Lee would be above Charles' laws.

Like his friend, Hank couldn't stop thinking about Lee, but for a different reason. Her demonstration of power left him wanting to know more. Was it really possible that someone could have the exact same mutation as another? Statistics told Hank that the probability was very low. There had to be some sort of differentiating factor to her mutation, something that made her different from Erik Lensherr.

Hank never really liked Erik, and he didn't know Lee very well, but he felt determined to prove that they weren't alike. He, like everyone else, was worried by her mutation. He worried that maybe she was related to him. It was plausible. She didn't look very much like him, other than dark hair and a tall frame, but that didn't discount the theory. He would have to come up with some sort of plan to get a DNA sample, or find a way to study Lee's mutation.

Lee left her room and made her way downstairs. She was sure she had missed lunch, as it was a quarter past four. Lee didn't meet anyone on her way to the kitchen. She made and ate a sandwich alone in the kitchen. She was looking through the cabinets for something to satisfy her salty craving when she felt the ground rumbling and heard the dishes in the sink rattling. The rolling vibrations were gone almost as soon as they started. It felt like what Lee imagined the aftershock of an earthquake or a distant explosion would feel like. She abandoned her search for food, and took up the hunt for what happened. She quickly found a door leading to the garden and search all around the giant house. Everything seemed to be normal. Perplexed, Lee went back inside, looking for someone.

Lee was walking down one of the many hallways when a door ahead of her opened. Hanks furry blue head poked around the door. Lee called his name, and quickened her pace to a jog to reach him.

"What the hell is going on?" Lee demanded as she reached the blue man. "It sounded like a bomb went off!" Hank smiled a bit, adjusted his glasses, and lightly grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the room he had been in. Surprised, Lee didn't struggle. She was much too interested in the room, which had hardwood floors, and dark wood paneling on the walls, but the décor is what struck Lee. Furniture was pushed up against the wall in one corner, and the rest of the room was filled with metal tables and lab equipment.

"We probably should have warned you earlier, but Charles is teaching Sean and Alex to control their abilities. They're a bit destructive, especially Alex's. Charles has him practice underground, underneath the mansion," explained Hank, as he moved about the lab gathering equipment. Lee watched him curiously.

He placed everything he had gathered on the table closest to Lee. He turned to her, and Lee felt as if she was being inspected. She suddenly felt very self-conscious under his intense gaze. His eyes settled on what Lee feared was her chest, and he moved forward. He lifted his hand, and before Hank could get any closer, Lee slapped it away.

Hank was shocked by her reaction. He only wanted a hair! He couldn't understand why she was so opposed to that, until her remembered that he never told her what he was doing. To someone out of the loop, Hank's action would seem much less innocent.

"I just need a DNA sample," Hank said, moving his hand forward again to pluck a loose strand of hair from Lee's sweater. He held the hair up to prove his point and sealed it in a clear plastic bag. Lee mumbled an apology as she watched him scrawl her name across the bag. She moved closer and peered over his shoulder as he worked at the table.

"Who's Erik Lenfar?" she asked. Hank turned, causing Lee to back up, and started at her confusedly.

"What?"

"The name on the other bag," she elaborated. Understanding swept over Hank as he realized she had misread the name on the other bag.

"Lensherr," he corrected her. "I have poor penmanship."

"Who is he?" she asked. Hank had to admit he was a little relieved that she didn't recognize the name.

"Another mutant. Actually, you appear to have the exact same mutation as him. I'm just doing a little research to find out why," he explained briefly.

"You think we're related?" she questioned. He nodded in reply. "So where is this Erik? Will I meet him?"

"Not if I can help it," was Hank's simple reply. Lee got the feeling that this man wasn't someone she should hope to meet. And yet it was all she could think about. All Lee ever wanted was to be with people similar to herself. She had found those people in Charles, Hank and the others. But to know someone with the same mutation as herself? The thought was so inviting. What were the odds?

Lee wanted to know more of this Erik Lensherr, but she knew better than to ask Hank. He didn't seem too keen on this person.

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><p>More Lee! Please review :)<p> 


	11. X

Thank you to those of you who reviewed the last couple of chapters. It means a great deal to me. Its a miracle I am posting this now, as there is currently a very loud and very nasty storm going on. It keeps knocking out the power and internet.

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><p>Lee got the feeling that Charles was a patient, understanding person. His kindness amazed her, which gave her the feeling that she could ask him anything. However, Lee couldn't find Charles, so Lee went back down to the lab to keep Hank company. He was mostly quiet as he worked, and Lee was content to stare around the room, taking in all the little bits and pieces, and then the larger apparatuses. She had no idea what any of them did, but it was interesting to just be in the room nonetheless.<p>

While watching Hank, Lee couldn't help but question a few things. "How did you get this man's hair? You didn't seem too keen on the man, so I didn't think he would be around to hand out DNA samples," Lee broke the silence.

"I got it from his sheets. He used to stay here. You know about Cuba right?"

"I know of it. I'm not familiar with the details," she answered, hoping he would fill her in. However, he didn't say anything else. Lee decided to prod him along.

"That was a while ago," she pushed the conversation forward.

"Charles just cleaned out the room this morning. It's probably where you'll end up. I went through his used sheets in the laundry room to get this," Hank explained bluntly as he held up a short dark hair with tweezers before dropping it in a test tube for safe keeping. Lee nodded, not really sure how else to reply.

"Why the interest in all this?" she asked after a while.

"Surely you know that. The odds of two mutants having the same mutation are very unlikely."

After a while longer of Lee sitting quietly and Hank working, the door to the lab opened. It was Charles.

"I've been looking for you," he said, looking at Lee as he walked into the room.

"Someone's in a better mood," Hank commented quietly, though both Lee and Charles heard him. Charles shot a brief glare towards the back of Hank's head, but returned his attention to Lee.

"Dinner should be here soon. None of us are particularly skilled in the culinary arts, and we were getting sick of pasta all the time, so Sean insisted on ordering pizza if that's alright with you," he said. Lee shrugged, not really caring. She wasn't a picky eater.

"That's fine. While you're here, I was wondering if I could ask you some questions," Lee started. Hank set down what he was doing and turned slightly, blatantly listening in on the conversation. Charles looked a bit curious, and nodded, encouraging her to speak.

"What do you think the odds are of me being like this Erik Lensherr? It's a bit strange we have the same ability, isn't it? You know him, yeah? And you've seen a bit of what I can do. Are our abilities really the same?" Once Lee got started, it was difficult for her to stop. She hardly gave Charles any time to answer, and she found that as soon as she said something, another thought would pop into her head, and she felt the need to voice it before she forgot. Charles ran a heavy hand through his hair, and let out a deep breath. He looked from Lee to Hank, and back again. Hank decided to stay out of the conversation, judging on how Charles reacted earlier in the day just from changing Erik's sheets.

"How do you know about him?" Charles asked her. The look of shock and fear on Lee's face amused Charles a bit, despite the circumstances, but he kept it to himself.

"After I woke up, Hank found me and he asked for a DNA sample. I had him tell me a bit," she answered, a bit afraid that she had somehow violated Charles' trust somehow.

"He was involved in what happened last October. We had a difference in opinion and went separate ways after Cuba," Charles stated diplomatically, without revealing anything useful or that Lee didn't already know.

"Involved how? I mean, you say you had a difference of opinion. Did it happen before or after? Was he the reason for Cuba, or did he help you?" Lee couldn't help her curiosity about the situation. She could tell Charles was troubled by this unknown man, but she couldn't help her wanting to know more about him. She felt a desperate need to know more about the man that she apparently had such an important thing in common with.

The expression in Lee's eyes weakened Charles' defenses a bit. She looked so confused, interested, curious. She stared at him, eyes wide and imploring. Charles sighed again. He couldn't very well say no to her. He could sense how badly she wanted to know more about his old friend. How could she not? The chances of two mutants having the same mutation was unheard of.

"I'll tell you what. After dinner, I'll tell you what you want to know over a glass of wine," he offered. He didn't actually stop to think that maybe she didn't drink, or that she didn't want to drink with him. The idea pained him, the thought of yet another rejection scared the hell out of him. But he waited for her reply.

Lee realized that she would have to be patient to find out what she wanted. Charles had been exceedingly kind to her already, and it wasn't in her place to push his hospitality. She was relieved at his offer, eager to learn more and to spend the time with him. He wasn't hard to look at, and his offer to share what he knew over a glass of wine almost sounded like an invitation for a date to Lee. However, she didn't think he would be interested in that, they had only just met.

"Perfect," she said, smiling. Charles liked that. He liked it when she smiled. It wasn't obnoxious, nor was it timid. It looked natural on her, as if she was born to smile.

Hank watched the two stare at each other, smiling like a couple of teenage fools. If he hadn't just witnessed the entire conversation, he would think young Charlie had just asked Lee from third period to the homecoming dance and she said yes. He rolled his eyes and returned to what he was doing, making a mental note that the next time Charles Xavier was in a murderous mood, get Lee in the same room as him and he'll be good as new.

Charles and Lee went up to dinner, leaving Hank behind in his lab. He claimed he would come up later, as soon as he was finished. Lee didn't argue, she was starving.

During their meal, Lee had Alex and Sean explain their abilities to her. Sean spoke animatedly, gesturing wildly, and even offering to demonstrate. Charles quickly warned him against it, though. Alex was the quiet and reserved type. Lee took him to be a bit of a brooder. Sean excitedly told her about their mutant codenames and how they referred to themselves as the X Men.

"The X Men?" she repeated, trying to suppress a giggle.

"Yeah, for Xavier. I'm Banshee, he's Havok, and he's Professor X. Oh, and Hank is Beast. We'll have to come up with something for you, though. Magneto is already taken," Sean explained.

"Professor?" she quirked an eyebrow and looked to her left at Charles.

"Just last year. From Oxford," he said simply, hoping to impress. The fact that he was an Oxford student always impressed at the pubs, and he wanted to impress Lee. Though, he party hoped that she wouldn't be impressed by something like that. She stuck him as different from other the other women he usually went after. Those women always fell for his tactics. Except for Moira, but she was a different story all together.

"Oh, so you've got a while until tenure, then. Better look busy," she teased. "Oxford, then? I attended Lund, though I barely escaped with a simple degree, no fancy titles unfortunately. It might have made my codename more exciting if I tried a bit harder in school. Doctor B, or something silly like that." Sean and Alex thoroughly enjoyed seeing Charles teased. He was a tough man to get the better of, and the humor in the situation was not lost on them. Charles was a good sport and went along with the teasing.

"Lund? I'm sorry to hear that," he joked, mocking faint disgust.

"I can't tell you how many times I thought that while I was there. It kept me busy, though," she said, old memories of her university days surfacing.

"What did you major in?" Sean asked.

"A bachelor's degree in literature. I almost scraped by with an M.R.S. degree, too," she answered. Sean and Alex didn't understand what she meant, but Charles choked a bit.

"You were married?" he asked quickly.

"Almost. I said almost. Never actually went through with it," she corrected him. Charles couldn't describe how he felt. He was glad that she wasn't married, or had previously been married. The thought of her with some strange man had him feeling quite odd. Jealousy was rearing its ugly head, and he barely knew the girl.

"How come?" Sean asked again. He was quite the curious fellow, Lee decided. She couldn't blame him though. Naturally he would want to know more about the new strange woman suddenly living in his home.

"This," she said as she raised her hand and pulled the fork, full of salad, from Alex's hand, demonstrating her mutation again.

"He wasn't too excited about marrying a mutant," Charles assumed. Alex snatched his fork from the air and continued eating.

"He didn't know. I broke it off before he could. I had just sort of realized what I was after I graduated, and I didn't think it was fair to the poor bloke," she explained to them. Charles noted how she repressed her emotions to deliver the explanation as detachedly as she could manage. To Sean and Alex, it seemed like it was all in the past and nothing but a distant memory. Charles could tell it still troubled her, though. However, he couldn't tell if she still held feelings for this man. Or at least, not without invading her thoughts again. He tried to restrain himself, as this was very personal. He didn't want to violate her trust, even though she would never had to know that he just slipped in quietly.

Charles was considering the moral dilemma of reading her thoughts as the conversation shifted towards how Alex and Sean became involved with the 'X Men.' They told their stories, unaided by the professor as he was still deep in thought.

He wanted to get to know Lee. He wanted to know everything about her. She was interesting, she was mysterious. She was infinitely curious, always wanting to know more. She was intelligent. Not anyone could get into Lund University and make it out with a degree. And god, was she beautiful. Her skin tone was beautifully pale. She had a slight dimple in her left cheek, and a bit of a bump on the bridge of her nose. He noticed a tiny line on her chin, a faint scar.

Charles was stirred from his musings as Hank burst into the dining room, a wide smile spread across his face.

"No relation!" He announced happily as he grabbed a plate and loaded it with slices of pizza, completely ignoring the salad Charles made. Though it was hardly a salad. He cut up half a head of lettuce and poured a bit too much vinaigrette dressing on top. He felt a responsibility to look out for everyone in the house, which included proper nutrition. However, he wasn't too interested in cooking (though salad making hardly counts as cooking), and lacked proper ingredients. He needed to go to the store soon.

Sean and Alex took a moment to figure out what Hank was talking about. But Charles was very pleased. He knew the likelihood of Erik and Lee being related was very slim, next to nothing, but he was pleased nonetheless.

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><p>Please review! Oh, and some nice LeeCharles takes place in the next bit, so keep an eye out for that.


	12. XI

I rewatched First Class illegally online. And I laughed at all the wrong parts. Like when Shaw killed Erik's mom and he's freaking out. Hilarious. Or basically whenever Erik does anything with his power. You know, clenching his hands, making borderline inappropriate noises, making a face like he needs more fiber in his diet. It cracks me up. I always wonder how awk those scenes were to film.

"OK, Fassy, in this scene you're going to stare at that satellite dish that isn't really there, really hard, making some grunting noises, pretend you need to poop. Annndddd action!"

This is by far the longest chapter yet. Enjoy!

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><p>Charles made sure everyone was busy before he fulfilled his promise to Lee. Hank was in his lab again, and Alex and Sean were watching television. Satisfied that they would not be disturbed, Charles first led Lee into the kitchen, where he procured a bottle of wine and two glasses, and then into a study on the other side of the house. He told Lee to make herself comfortable, and as she sat down in one of the armchairs, he popped the cork and poured out two glasses of wine. He handed Lee a glass and sat down across from her, keeping the bottle close by.<p>

Lee wasted no time. She fired off a round of questions almost as soon as Charles sat down. He did his best to answer them honestly. He told her of how he met Erik, he told her about Raven. He told her as much as he could about the CIA and Division X. He told her of Shaw and the Hellfire Club. He explained what he knew of Erik and Shaw's relationship. She listened attentively, asking questions when she was confused by something, and letting him just speak freely when she felt he needed to.

Lee could tell that Charles was very close to the people he described. She couldn't help but feel for the man. He tried his best to cover up his pain, to seem indifferent, but Lee was very astute. She noticed how he would go from animatedly telling her the story of how he dove into the water to save Erik, mentioning every detail to the temperature of the water to the speed of the submarine, to the exact time of day, to glossing over the finer points of his abandonment. He would go from telling harrowing war stories with grand gestures and a twinkle in his eye to stating the most basic facts in a professional and detached tone when it got to be too personal. Lee didn't mind though. She figured he was kind enough to tell her everything, so she shouldn't be picky in how he delivered it.

He finally told her of his dream to turn the mansion into a school or safe haven for mutants. He wanted to create a place where he could help young mutants control their powers, and to give them a place where they could feel like for once in their lives they fit in. Lee found this to be quite admirable.

The pair went through most of the bottle of wine when Charles decided he was done talking. He was tired of talking about everything that happened in the previous year. He never talked about it with anyone before Lee and he feared he was sharing far too much. What could he say, alcohol always made him a bit loose lipped.

Lee poured out the rest of the wine into Charles' glass. She felt he needed it the most. It was well into the evening, nearly midnight. Though she wasn't tired. She slept in too late for that to be a problem. She worried about Charles, though. He looked weary in the dim lighting. He had been through a lot. He lost a lot. He gulped down the last of his wine, and gently placed the empty glass next to Lee's on the table separating them. They stared at each other in silence.

"You'll probably want to go to bed soon. I cleared out the room next to Alex's. It's not far from my own. You won't be alone anymore," he said, breaking the silence.

"Honestly, I'm not that tired," said Lee, causing Charles to smile a bit for some unknown reason. Lee liked to think it was because he enjoyed her company. "Is there anything you want to know about me, while we're sharing life stories?"

Charles definitely wanted to know more about Lee, but he didn't know where to begin. He was most certainly interested in the almost marriage, and how she came to America. Why had she moved to London? Why did she choose to major in literature? Surely she was smart to get into Lund, so why wasn't she holding some academic type job? When did her mutation manifest itself? Was she currently single? Would she mind so terribly if he kissed her? Charles attempted to clear his head. His thinking had become cloudy from the wine.

"What do you think I should know?" he finally settled on a question, as lame as it was. He tried to come off as cool and aloof, vaguely interested. But he had a feeling he wasn't exactly succeeding. Lee giggled and tapped her index finger against her chin in thought.

"Why bother asking? You could just read my mind," she teased, massaging her temples with two fingers and quirking an eyebrow, imitating the telepath in front of her. Charles hadn't realized that she had ever seen him do that. He thought he was being discreet, but clearly she wasn't easily fooled. He smiled apologetically and asked her to continue. As she spoke, he wondered if he really did look like that when he used his power. He hoped not, because it was kind of silly looking.

"I'm Swedish, I have an education. My parents don't know I'm a mutant, nor did my fiancé. Nobody did. It took me a while to figure out what I was, sometime around my graduation. But I've had the power since before then. There weren't too many mutants in Malmo, so I went to London hoping to meet more of my kind. I didn't have much luck, but I heard about you lot, so I got on a plane and then you know the rest," Lee summarized her life in a short little paragraph. She didn't think it was all that interesting. "By the way, would you mind horribly if I made an international call tomorrow? My parents think I'm here for a job and I haven't talked to them since I was still in Europe."

Charles of course agreed. He probably would have agreed to anything at that point, though. Which is probably why he and Lee decided it was a good idea to try some very old, very expensive looking scotch.

Lee woke up the next morning feeling as if she had fallen down a flight of stairs. As she slowly came to, she did her best to pull the metal rings attaching the curtains to the rod across the window, blocking out the morning sun. Lee then realized that the curtains were not the same ones from the room she spent the night in the night before. She panicked, though it was short lived due to her hangover.

All she could think was something along the lines of 'please god don't let there be another person in this bed.' As she groggily lifted her head, and maneuvered her body into a sitting position, she gratefully realized she was indeed alone. And fully clothed. Her shoes were still on, even. She had fallen asleep on top of the bed, not even bothering with a pillow or blanket. There was a bit of a wet spot where she had drooled in her sleep.

Lee wiped her eyes and looked around the now dark room. It definitely wasn't her own room. It took her a while to realize that it was the room she snuck into the other day. It was her new room, the one she had unofficially moved into. It was Erik's old room. Lee wasn't entirely sure if she was comfortable sleeping in the same bed as the man Charles described to her only hours ago. Granted, it wasn't really his bed anymore, but she still felt funny about being in there.

Lee could remember everything that Charles told her, for that was all before the drinking got out of hand. What troubled Lee was that she couldn't remember what she told him in exchange for his stories. It's not that she had anything she wished to conceal. She would be out of luck if that were the case, as its rather difficult to keep secrets from a telepath.

Lee slowly eased herself off of the bed and inched toward the door, not looking forward to any more light. She braced herself and opened the door slowly. The hall wasn't very bright, much to Lee's pleasure. Though, she steadied herself in the doorway, letting her eyes adjust, and mentally preparing herself for the long walk to her old bedroom to retrieve her things. As Lee was standing there, leaning against the door jam, a door a little ways down the hall opened. Charles emerged from a dark room, looking rather disheveled. His hair was a mess, his eyes were red and bleary looking, and he was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. He rubbed his eyes and noticed Lee.

"Hung over?" he asked simply. Lee nodded, careful not to jostle her head too much. Charles turned around and opened the door to what Lee assumed to be his room, unless he ended up in the wrong room like she had. "Come here, I'll get you something for the headache." He beckoned her over with his hand, and she followed him into his bedroom.

Despite the hangover, Lee was beside herself. She had never been in a boy's bedroom before. She was a bit innocent and naïve as a teen and that carried over into college. She had very little experience in a boy's bedroom, up until she met her former fiancé.

Though, it was hardly fair to call Charles a boy. He most certainly was not one. He was very mature, in every wonderful sense of the word. Lee corrected herself. Charles was a man. A very handsome man. She had never been in a man's bedroom before, not since the fiancé.

It was fairly clean. The desk was a bit cluttered with books and papers, which was expected from a professor. He had books on his bedside table, as well as more papers and a few pens. There was a blazer thrown over the back of an armchair in the corner, a belt slung over the arm. Lee noticed she fell behind and that Charles was standing in the doorway to the attached bathroom, looking at her. She smiled sheepishly, having been caught. Charles returned the smile and flicked the light on. He cringed and covered his eyes with his hand. When he felt more comfortable, he removed his hand and opened the medicine cabinet. Lee moved to stand next to him. She was always curious about medicine cabinets, and what sort of things people kept in them. It was wildly nosy, but so interesting.

Charles scanned the contents of the cabinet, looking for Advil or something. There were several glass pill bottles, and he had to turn a few to read the labels. The label of one bottle caught Lee's eye.

"Oxycodone? What do you need this for?" she asked and grabbed the bottle for inspection, without thinking. "I'm sorry, I'm so nosy. I'm sorry," she put the bottle back in the cabinet, and backed away a step. She looked to Charles, hoping she hadn't offended him, or pried into his personal business. Bedrooms were a personal space, and it was a lucky thing for her to be in his. A medicine cabinet was something entirely different. She was invading his space.

A slightly pained expression crossed Charles' face. He found the bottle of Advil and handed it to Lee.

"It's from when I was shot," he answered, not looking at her. Lee remembered his story, how it was because of Erik that he had spent a month in the hospital, more months in physical therapy, and god knows how long mentally recovering from such a traumatizing event. In essence, his best friend shot him in the back.

"I'm sorry," Lee repeated, taking the bottle of Advil from him.

"It's fine. I haven't gotten around to getting rid of it," he said with a shrug. He really wasn't mad. It was an innocent question. He couldn't be angry at Lee for something he liked so much about her. She just wanted to know more. She was curious.

In all honesty, Charles hadn't forgotten about the painkillers. He kept the bottle to serve as some sort of sick reminder. Not that he could ever forget what happened. Plus, it didn't hurt to have the pills around. They were expensive, and he hated the thought of wasting them. It didn't hurt anyone if he took one every once in a while, anyway. It was something he learned from his mother; it was one of the very few things she ever taught her son.

Lee's heart broke at the expression on Charles' face. He seemed so hurt. She haphazardly threw the pill bottle she was holding into the sink and threw her arms around Charles. He looked like he desperately needed a hug. She smiled to herself as he returned the gesture.

Lee quite liked the feeling of his arms around her. Though, his breath smelled disgustingly like scotch. Hers probably wasn't much better.

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><p>Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I love love love the long-ish ones. And I love love love all of you readers and reviewers. Keep up the great work.<p>

This is completely unrelated, but my most favorite member of Jackass (next to Bam, before he started wearing velvet jackets and stupid top hats), Ryan Dunn, died. For a Jackass, he died in the most stupid way. May he cause plenty of mischief in wherever you go after you die. Rest in peace, or raise some hell.


	13. XII

This took me so long to write, for some inexplicable reason. For some reason, the words just wouldn't come to me. I'm sorry if this sucks, but I had to write something to get over the speed bump.

18 days until the very last Harry Potter movie. Bring on the henna dark marks.

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><p>After their embrace, Charles and Lee deemed it time to face the world. He ushered her out of his room, and at the worst possible time. Alex was just leaving his room to get breakfast, and Sean emerged from his only seconds later. Their timing couldn't have been planned better.<p>

A sly smile formed on Sean's lips, and he exchanged a look with Alex who was across the hall, as they noticed the pair.

Sean opened his mouth, no doubt to say something perverted, when Charles cut him off with a sharp "don't."

"I thought we weren't allowed to have girls in our rooms," Alex teased in the place of Sean.

"You're setting a bad example for us," Sean added with a broad grin. Charles gave each boy a withering stare, though they held their ground, too eager at their chance to rub the professor's slip up in his face. Though embarrassed, Lee was amused. Her and Charles had indefinitely been caught in a compromising situation. Everyone knew they spent the evening together in Charles' study, with wine, but did not foresee her emerging from his bedroom the next morning, wearing the same clothes as the day before.

"I guess this is what they call the walk of shame," Sean added.

"We didn't wake you, did we?" Lee asked with a coy smile and a wink. The look on Charles' face was laughable. He looked completely and utterly shocked, and thoroughly embarrassed. He started shaking his head, repeating the word 'no.' He was incredibly flustered. Alex and Sean instantly shut up, just as shocked as Charles. They hadn't expected Lee to be so bold.

"I'm just kidding. I slept in there," she pointed to the still open door of her new bedroom, "Charles was just getting me something for a headache." Charles was grateful for her delivering the explanation. He wasn't sure he was up to dealing with Sean and Alex, as if they would have believed him anyway. The duo seemed to buy Lee's explanation, as they simply shrugged and walked off. Charles knew that they didn't actually think anything happened, but he also knew that he would never live the incident down.

Lee walked off without a word, leaving Charles alone again. A quick peak told Charles that she was retrieving her things to more to her new room. He followed her. Lee noticed Charles walking after her and slowed her pace, allowing him to catch up so they could walk together. They exchanged a quick smile. She led him into the bedroom, and he quickly noticed the room seemed virtually untouched, save for her two bags already by the door.

The sight of Lee's bags caused a sad thought to cross Charles' mind. He didn't know how long Lee intended to stay at the mansion. Perhaps she had somewhere else to go, or at least wanted to live on her own. Surely she wasn't planning on staying at the mansion permanently. Although, Charles would have been happy to have her for as long as she liked. In fact, he wanted her to stay, to live in the mansion. She would be the first mutant to join them after Cuba.

It was then that Charles realized he could divide his life into two sections. There was Before Cuba, and After. It was a depressing thought, especially with how poorly After Cuba began. Not wanting to look like some poor depressed fool, Charles did his best to push those thoughts away. He focused on what was before him, which was Lee bending over to pick up her bags. Charles' mind went blank as he stared. Lee stood back up, swinging the duffel bag over her shoulder. She turned around and smiled brightly at Charles, completely unaware of what he was thinking.

Charles snapped back to reality and grabbed Lee's remaining bag in an effort to distract himself. He wordlessly followed her back out of the room and down the corridor. Lee pushed open the door to her new room and dropped the bag she was carrying at the foot of the bed.

"You can just drop that here, thanks," she instructed. Charles did as he was told. They stood in silence for a few moments. It was slightly awkward, neither knowing what to say. Lee decided to break the silence in an effort to ease the situation. "I don't suppose I'll find any women's products in this bathroom."

Charles' eyebrows shot up, his eyes wide in terror. Had she really just asked him that? Lee noted Charles' horrified expression with confusion, until she realized he mistook her words.

"No, no. Not what I meant. I mean like shampoo and whatnot. No, definitely not what I meant," she stammered, clearing up the misunderstanding, though still a little embarrassed. The alarm left Charles' face as he took in her words.

"Sorry. Um, no I don't think you're in luck. Sorry," he answered. Lee shrugged; she would take what she could get.

Days later, Lee had finally gotten her own shampoo and soap, brands that didn't have her smelling like a dessert or a man. She had spent several more nights with Charles in his study. Though, they never had more to drink than one or two glasses of wine. The torment from Sean and Alex about drinking together all night, alone, had been enough. Nothing had happened that night, but it embarrassed both Lee and Charles. Though, Lee had to admit that she wasn't repulsed by the idea of being with Charles. He had been so good to her, she trusted him completely.

Since Lee's arrival in his life, Charles found himself thinking less and less on Cuba, and the betrayal. He found himself drinking less, he was less moody, and he suddenly felt hopeful. In the beginning, life without Erik and Raven seemed so daunting and frightening, but suddenly, with Lee, things were less serious. He wasn't weighed down by his grief and guilt. He even flushed the Oxycodone down the toilet. He even had the idea to clean out Raven's room, but chickened out at the last minute. Charles was feeling good, but not great.

Charles was scared that having Lee around would remind him of Erik. And, honestly, every time he saw her using her power, his mind would wander to some random memory of the former friend. But Charles had gotten rather good at pushing those memories away and replacing them with new ones filled with Lee and the others.

Precisely two weeks after her arrival in the mansion, Lee found herself in Hank's lab again. He had her performing all sorts of seemingly mindless tasks. He had her using her mutation to pick up a coin, a watch, screws and nails, random bits of lab equipment. It was when he pushed a gold ring onto the table in front of her that Lee frowned. She was trying to lift it, but it wouldn't budge. It surprised Lee that she couldn't move it. She thought surely she had moved a ring before. This failure had Hank grinning. He took the ring and replaced it with another. Lee could lift the new ring.

"Amazing," mumbled Hank as he scribbled things down on a notepad. Charles had been watching the whole thing silently. He and Hank had been wondering how far the similarities between Lee and Erik ran.

"What?" she asked, clearly irritated. She snatched the two rings from Hank and examined them in her hands. They looked almost the same, though different designs.

"Magneto's powers controlled all metal. If I'm right, he was able to manipulate their electromagnetic fields. But you see, not all metals are naturally electromagnetic. At first I thought you and he had the same mutation, as impossible as that sounds. Even so, the fact that they're so similar is still improbable," Hank rambled on.

"I'm not sure I get it," Lee mumbled still looking at the rings in her hands.

"The plain gold band is pure gold. Pure gold is not magnetic. It is, however, electromagnetic. The other ring, the one with the designs, is fake. It's not gold. It's an alloy that has a natural magnetic field. Do you see the difference?" Hank asked, looking at Lee. She frowned down at the two rings. Charles watched silently for her reaction.

"You're saying I'm a magnet?"

"To put it simply, yes. All metal is electromagnetic, but not all metal is magnetic. Magneto was electromagnetic, while you're magnetic," Hank explained in simpler terms for Lee.

"Then why did you all call him Magneto? Bit of a misnomer, yeah?" Charles smiled at Lee's humor. He felt he had a reason to. His fears had just been quelled. He was happy.

Hank laughed and shrugged, taking the rings from Lee. He cleared the table of the other parts of his tests as well.

"Really, though. I ought to be Magneto. This guy stole my name. Can we write him a letter or something? I can't come up with anything else suitable," said Lee, turning to Charles. He laughed.

"I'm afraid I don't know his address, but we'll come up with something much better for you," he promised. Charles had every intention to fulfill that promise, to keep Lee around as long as he could.

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><p>Did that make any sense?<p>

P.S. A bug flew into my eye as I typed that last sentence. Into my fucking eye.

Anyway, reviews please!


	14. XIII

I've gotten over my funk, it would seem. Next chapter's already under way.

I just watched the "Vulnerability" episode of the Glee Project and have been listening to "Your Song" by Elton John on repeat, so sorry if this is full of angst.

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><p>Hank was, in essence, perplexed by Lee. She was ordinary enough, as far as mutants could be. And yet, she had Charles all in a twist. It was like her arrival in the mansion had flipped some sort of switch inside Charles. Day by day, Charles slowly returned to his old self. He was participating more and more in the training of Alex and Sean. The boys weren't as astute as Hank, but they knew something had Charles in a better mood, and that something's name was Lee.<p>

Yet, despite his added attention to the boys, he used Cerebro less and less. His vision of welcoming more mutants into the mansion had fallen to the way-side.

Lee had finally called her parents. She told them she had gotten a work visa, and was living with friends. She told them she was working in a school. She avoided any details, not that they asked very many questions. They were just happy that Lee seemed happy, and that she was working. They had been angry with her for leaving home, for leaving the fiancé. They adored him, and had no greater hope than for Lee to marry well, have loads of children, and live down the street so that they could be close to their only child and grandchildren. Lee hated that dream. However, it seemed as though her parents were slowly getting over the broken engagement. Lee assumed that it was because they were hoping for her to find some rich American to settle down with. A foreign husband was better than no husband.

The phone call home bothered Lee for days. Not because of her mother's blatant disapproval of the very idea of her daughter being single, but because of her almost lie. She said she was working in a school. She hadn't done anything work related, other than helping cook a few meals and supervise a few training sessions. And there were only two children. Sean was sixteen, and Alex was eighteen. The two boys would be adults soon. For all the talk Charles had been feeding her for the weeks she had been living the mansion, Lee was seeing very little action.

Charles always talked about how he was going to turn the mansion into a boarding school for mutant children, or something along those lines. Lee had heard of the machine Hank built that helped amplify Charles' power, which he used to find mutants. She heard the story of how Charles had used that very machine to find her. So why wasn't he using it to find more mutants?

Lee didn't know it, but Hank shared this frustration. He wanted to help Charles with this noble goal, but Charles had to be the spear head. And he was, essentially, failing. Hank was sick of seeing Charles mope about the house, talking but never acting.

"Hey, Hank," Lee poked her head into the lab after a quiet knock. It was late in the evening, well after dinner. Hank was messing with a microscope, trying to replace the lens. He looked up to see Lee, and gestured for her to enter. She assumed her usual position, perching on a stool near Hank's work station. She spent a lot of time in the lab. Science was something that interested her, though she hardly had any aptitude for it.

"What's up?" he asked, returning his gaze to the broken microscope.

"I was wondering about Charles," she began. Hank looked up, quirking an eyebrow. He hoped she wasn't asking for dating advice, but waited for her to go on, wondering where she was going with the conversation.

"Is he the sort of guy that's all talk?" she asked, having Hank wonder what sort of things Charles had been telling Lee.

"What do you mean?" He had to clarify before he could give her a satisfying answer.

"He talks about turning this place into a home for mutants. You lot have been here for six months and it's still just the four of you. Plus me, but I don't count." Hank sighed, trying to fine the right words. He agreed with Lee, but he wasn't sure she understood Charles very well, or what he was going through.

"You're right, but a lot happened to him. He's regrouping, getting himself together," Hanks started.

"It's not like they died. Erik and Raven left because they were angry with the world. Charles should be out trying to keep more mutants from feeling that way. He failed with those two, which I understand has got him pretty down, but if I were him, I'd be out there trying to prove those stupid idiots wrong. I'd be recruiting with a vengeance." Lee's words amused Hank. She was showing a real passion, a hopeful faith in Charles' dream. Hank decided that he liked Lee, and that she was the kick in the rear that Charles needed to get his plan into motion.

"What?" she demanded, noticing the broad smile on Hank's face. He pushed away the broken microscope and turned fully to Lee, giving her his complete attention.

"So what are we going to do?"

Lee and Hank spoke for nearly an hour on the subject, but failed to come up with any concrete plans. Though, they did agree that they would attempt to talk to Charles about it separately, to try and give him a little motivation. Hank had a feeling that Lee would be better at that. He was reminded of how Charles nearly threw his back out to assist Lee in moving furniture around in her room a few days earlier. Charles went out of his way to please Lee, and Hank planned on using that to his advantage. Which, really, would ultimately help Charles.

It was during one of their ritual glasses of wine in his study that Lee struck. She was glad that Charles had promised to not read her thoughts without permission, giving her chance to plot.

"So, how's the search coming?" she asked, peering over the rim of her glass at Charles.

"The search for what?" he asked, completely lost.

"For new students. It's not much of a school with only two kids," she elaborated, looking at him expectantly.

"No, I know, but I'm not exactly equipped to turn this place into a school," he countered. He was making up excuses.

"So get equipped," she challenged. She looked him strait in the eye, daring him to come up with an excuse. Charles wondered what had gotten into her and resisted the temptation to delve into her thoughts to find an answer.

"It's not that easy," he started.

"Neither was university, or flying transatlantic for my first flight ever, or leaving my family to move to a country where I knew no one, and then moving again across an entire ocean. But hey, I'm not dead, all of my limbs are intact, and I'd say my mental state is fairly healthy. No harm done. In fact, I think I've come out better for it all." Charles opened his mouth for some sort of half hearted rebuttal, but shut it, knowing that she was right. He frowned, not knowing how to argue with her.

Though, Charles knew he shouldn't argue. Lee was right. He was just being lazy, letting his fears get the best of him.

"So what's keeping you, professor? You're smart, young, rich, handsome, powerful. You've got everything going for you." Lee hoped a bit of an ego boost would help. Charles needed to rebuild his confidence if he was ever going to get anything done.

"You think I'm handsome?" He smirked.

"Not the point. And yes. But don't change the subject," Lee scolded, but the smirk didn't leave Charles' face.

"I'm sorry, but it's not very often a beautiful woman takes such an interest in me and my goals," he said, smirk still present.

"Flattery will not get you very far. It'll get you a little, as I'm only human, but not all the way," said Lee. Charles was flirting with her. She didn't mind it, in fact, she enjoyed it. But she was on a mission.

"I would need staff- teachers, people who were good with children, some sort of crew. I can't cook for and clean up after a bunch of children. And of course they would have to be mutants, or really tolerant humans. There are a lot of responsibilities. I would need funding, insurance. If anyone ever wants to graduate, I would need accreditation. There are a lot of factors," he explained, getting a little over whelmed just listening to himself list everything.

"Then let's get started. I've got a degree in literature, I can teach about that. Though, I have absolutely no experience with children or education. Just about as much experience as you have with starting a school, I reckon. Got to start somewhere, yeah?"

Charles wasn't exactly sure what had gotten into Lee, but he was inexplicably thrilled. She was pushing him to his goal. She was getting behind his idea. She supported him. It was comforting. And so very little things made Charles feel comforted or supported in life After Cuba.

Charles went to bed that night thinking of Lee, and how she somehow managed to get him motivated. He vowed to himself that he would start looking for mutants with Cerebro the next day. First older ones, mutants like Sean and Alex. It would be easier to start off there.

Charles lay awake for hours, planning. But the more he thought about the future, the more he was haunted by the past. He couldn't stop dark thoughts from entering his mind. What if he failed the students like he failed Raven? What if he couldn't help them, like how he couldn't help Erik? Charles slept poorly that night, haunted by his failure as a brother and friend. Sure, he was a professor, but he wasn't equipped to lead young people, not after his recent resounding failure.

Lee had given Charles a bit of hope, but it seemed that getting over Erik and Raven would be more difficult than a few reassurances and some mild flirting. Lee would have to try harder.

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><p>So, Charles needed a good kick in the pants to get his shit together.<p> 


	15. XIV

I went roller skating today, and for some reason, it inspired me. Not sure why. Before they passed, my grandparents owned a skating rink, and it had me feeling all nostalgic and warm and fuzzy being in at a rink again. It was pretty "groovy", I guess. God, I hate how that was even in the script for First Class. I hate that word, ever since I played on a fourth grade recreational volleyball team called the Groovy Girls. Our jerseys were tye-dyed.

Anyway, this is a bit of a warm and fuzzy chapter. I think y'all will like it.

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><p>Charles stood inside of Cerebro, staring at the control panels and wires for what felt like hours. He promised himself and Lee that he would try to find new mutants. But for some reason, he couldn't get himself to do it. It was a strange feeling to Charles, especially when he had spent everyday in the contraption for hours on end before he found Lee.<p>

In those days, Charles had encountered many mutants, but he never acted on them. Until he found Lee. He couldn't quite place his finger on why she was different, on why he felt like he couldn't go on without knowing her. Something about her made him act. Perhaps Lee's presence was the universe's way of telling Charles to get his act together. He knew he needed to move on from Erik and Raven, that he wasn't going to be able to fix anything while dwelling on the past.

Charles wouldn't be able to mend the broken relationships by doing nothing. He doubted he could fix them at all, but he resolved that the best way to move forward would be to forge new ones, relationships with mutants that would allow him to make up for the way he treated Raven. He carried that guilt with him everywhere he went. If only he had been a bit more understanding, more accepting of her appearance, showing her that it was perfectly alright for her to be secure with her image and herself. He wouldn't fail anyone else. But to do that, he would have to take the plunge.

He was a coward, or so he told himself as he walked away from Cerebro. He had chickened out. He was afraid of what he would find. What if he found Raven? What if she wasn't happy? Or worse, what if she was? It was an irrational fear, but a fear nonetheless.

As he was walking away from the machine, Charles worried over what Hank and Lee would say if they knew he backed out. He could see the disappointed look Hank would give him, though he probably wouldn't have said anything. Le would have given him a similar look, but she definitely would have called him out. She would scold him; she would make him go back. She would push him until he did what he set out to do. Charles both loved and hated her for that. She pushed him out of his comfort zone, without even being there. He would have to thank her, he thought as he turned on his heel and returned to Cerebro.

While Charles was deep within the mansion, using Cerebro (something Lee had yet to see), Lee started her own plan. She was going to help Charles. She wanted to be a part of something, and a grand opportunity to help start something great had been thrust upon her. So, Lee enlisted Sean to help her find the phone book. Once they found it in a cabinet behind old canned carrots and beans in the kitchen, Lee set to work. She called as many schools as she could find.

Charles left Cerebro feeling rather disappointed. He had been able to find mutants no problem, but none had stood out the way Lee had. If he was going to start a school, he was going to need teachers. There were virtually none in the area, as he had already tapped that resource six months earlier for the CIA. A small wave of anxiety swept over Charles as he realized two of those people ended up on the wrong side, and one was dead. It was hardly the respectable track record. Charles went straight to his room. He wasn't in the mood to see anybody.

Lee stood in front of the bathroom mirror, smoothing down her hair and re-tucking her oxford shirt into the grey pencil skirt. She needed to look presentable, and hirable. Satisfied that she looked decent enough, Lee left her room, trying not to trip down the stairs in the heels she rarely wore. She only ran into Hank as she was leaving the mansion; it was still early. He of course asked where she was going, but she didn't give him a direct answer- just a mischievous smile, wink, and a few vague words.

Lee used her mutation to start one of the cars in the garage. She picked the least nice looking one and headed to her first stop of the day- an 8:30 job interview at Saint Luke's School for Boys in Northcastle. She also had an 11:15 at Stonewood Elementary in White Plains, a 2:00 at Salesian High School in Elmsford, and coming full circle, a 4:00 at The Winston School in Hawthorne.

Charles emerged from his room late in the morning. It had been several days since he last used Cerebro. He was having difficulty finding anyone, and it left him feeling a bit useless. He ate a small late breakfast of toast and decided to venture down to Hank's lab, where the blue mutant was sure to be.

"Good morning, sunshine," Hank said as Charles walked into the room, noting his glum expression.

"What are you up to?" Charles ignored Hank's slight. Hank was bent over a sewing machine of all things. He could see the familiar navy fabric spread out on the table.

"I'm making a suit for Lee. I could have just given her Magneto's but the bastard took it. It's virtually the exact same thing, just different measurements," Hank explained. Charles didn't want to know how he got Lee's measurements, but was glad to see that Hank was starting to think of Lee as a part of the team. Perhaps he was on the right track after all.

"Speaking of, where is she?" Hank stifled a snort. He knew Charles would bring her up at some point, and wasn't at all surprised that it was so soon into the conversation.

"She left early this morning. Said something about having an appointment and she would be out all day," said Hank as he went back to work on the new suit.

"Is she alright?" Charles was thinking she had a doctor's appointment or something, and wondering why she hadn't said anything to himself or Hank. They weren't actual doctors, but Charles knew well enough about the body to be useful. He had taken so many damned anatomy and biology classes in school; he was probably just as good. But, Charles figured she didn't feel comfortable with the situation. He hoped something wasn't wrong. He briefly entertained the idea of seeking her out with Cerebro to see what was the matter, but knew that it would have been a gross violation of her trust. He would have to settle for when she got home to find out, if she even wanted him to know.

Lee didn't walk through the front door until five in the evening. Charles had been growing anxious, wondering what sort of appointment could take all bloody day. He practically jumped on her the second she walked through the kitchen door and past his perch at the table.

"And where have you been all day?" he played it cool, not wanted to come off crazed.

"Job interviews," she said simply as she dropped her briefcase on the island and rummaged around in the refrigerator; she hadn't eaten all day. Charles was glad her head was in the refrigerator, because his face fell. She was looking for a job? He was under the impression she was going to stay in the mansion, with him.

"Oh?" was all he could choke out. He steeled his face, trying to get a grip on himself. Lee pulled out a container of left over pasta and sat down at the table across from Charles. A drawer across the room opened and a fork levitated towards her outstretched hand. She popped off the lid and started eating the pasta cold.

"I've been driving around all day. I owe you a tank of gas, by the way. I've been to four schools today," she sighed, thoroughly exhausted. She had a smile plastered on her face all day, and had to answer the same damn questions over and over again, while having to sound genuinely excited. Charles had to wonder, was she really that desperate to get out?

The briefcase lifted itself into the air, dragging across the empty space by the buckles. Charles noticed the strain on Lee's face as she lifted the bag to herself by the small amount of metal. The case dropped in between the two and the buckles snapped open. Lee reached inside and pulled out a pile of papers. She handed him one- her resume.

"This is impressive. I didn't realize you had experience in a school," said Charles, eyes still scanning the sheet.

"I haven't set foot in a school since university. It's all schools I've heard of in London. One of them's even in Scotland. I've never been to Scotland," she laughed. The principals she had met with over the course of her day had all been horribly gullible.

"Whose phone number and address is this?" he asked, looking at the letterhead. It had her full name, an unknown phone number and address.

"Marco's Pizza on Bedford," she said with a wicked smile. She handed him the rest of the papers she had been holding. Charles looked through them, a bit confused.

"What are these?"

"Curriculums. I couldn't very well ask for every single subject at one interview, so I had to set up meetings at different schools. The maths is from Stonewall, English and literature from Winston, history from Salesian, and French from Saint Luke's. You've got to start somewhere." Lee stood up, returning the container of pasta to the refrigerator. Charles didn't even care that she had eaten directly out of it and put it back. He stood up, papers still in hand and walked over to her.

He couldn't explain it, but he was suddenly so damn happy. Lee had done that for him. She had lied and pretended to be a teacher looking for work to get curriculums from different schools so he could form his own. Caught up in the moment, Charles grabbed Lee's face and kissed her. The papers fell from his hand to the floor, but he didn't give a damn. He was too busy kissing the most amazing woman he had ever met.


	16. XV

Sorry, I kind of lied to some of you that reviewed the last chapter. This took longer to write than I originally thought it would.

Just so we're all on the same page, this story is not going to last forever. The end is near. Ish.

I will not be writing a sequel. An epilogue, yes. A few vignette-type oneshots, maybe. I'm open to the idea. So, if there are any little scenes from this story that you would like to see expanded, let me know! Or, if you have any ideas for something that wasn't written down, I'd like to hear that as well.

But don't worry, there's still a lot that needs to happen before this story is over!

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><p>Lee was shocked. No, that was too harsh a word. She was pleasantly surprised. So much so, that she failed to react appropriately. She felt Charles' hands slowly drop from her face as he pulled back. Her wide eyes took in his disappointed face, the frown and the wrinkled forehead. She didn't like that face.<p>

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me. That will never happen again, it was completely unprofessional and I'm sorry if I in any way-" Lee cut off Charles' ridiculous rambling by grabbing his lapels and pulling him to her. She kissed him. Charles wasn't as slow to respond as she had been the first time around. She was vaguely aware of him placing his hands on her waist, as her hands slid from his lapels to his neck.

Just as Lee was really getting into it, Charles stepped back in a slight panic. He mouthed what Lee understood to be "Sean", and went to pick up the scattered papers just as Sean walked into the kitchen. Lee moved out of the way as Sean went to the refrigerator. He eyed the two suspiciously. He wasn't exactly sure what they had been up to, but Charles' face was flushed and Lee was blushing. He probably interrupted something.

Sean grabbed a bottle of Coke, popped off the top, and sipped it while watching the pair with a scrutinizing gaze.

"You weren't like, making out were you?" he said finally. Their reactions said it all, bringing a smile to Sean's lips. Lee just shook her head furiously, eyes wide. Charles kept saying "no" over and over again as he straightened the papers, still crouched down on the floor. By then, they were both blushing. Sean had never seen the professor so embarrassed, and took great joy in the rare moment. He was also glad to see that the poor older man was getting some action, and hoped that he would loosen up a bit.

"He could just erase your memory," threatened Lee, gesturing towards Charles who was standing up. "Or I could lock you in the basement."

Lee's threat sent shivers down Sean's spine. It was eerily similar to Erik, even though Sean knew she was just kidding.

"I never saw anything," cried Sean as he made his hasty exit.

"I'm not sure I should allow you near children," Charles joked, placing the neat stack of papers back in Lee's briefcase.

"Why not? I can scare them into submission," she said, going along with the joke. She wasn't even really sure how she would truly react around children. She had never been near any, not since she was one herself. Charles smiled at her. They were both a little unsure of what to do next. They just kissed. Twice. In the kitchen. Charles hadn't planned it, though he had been wanting to for some time. Lee had to admit that she harbored a bit of a crush on Charles.

"He'll keep quiet, won't he?" Lee asked, nervous that her reputation in the house was suddenly on the line.

"I'm sure he's telling Alex or Hank this very moment, and I don't even need to use my telepathy to tell you that," Charles laughed at Lee's embarrassment, sure that it wasn't he she was embarrassed of. He laughed again at her exaggerated eye roll.

Dinner that night was slightly awkward for Lee. The others shot her knowing looks and mischievous smirks. They certainly knew what happened, thanks to Sean. Charles seemed to ignore it, and Lee did her best to do the same. Nobody outright said anything, much to Lee's pleasure.

After dinner, Lee retired to her room as Charles sat in his study, going over the curriculums Lee had practically stolen for him. She even got a copy of one of the schools' course catalogs. He flipped through the pages, noticing little hand written notes in the margins. He had never actually seen Lee's handwriting, but he had a feeling that she wrote the notes. She had gone to great lengths to help him, and he found her loyalty touching. She had faith in him, that much was evident. Charles slept well that night.

Charles put up less and less of a fight to use Cerebro in the following week. Hank was glad to see that his invention wasn't rusting in the basement, that it was being put to good use. He couldn't say that he was shocked when Sean told him what he walked in on. He knew it was bound to happen sometime. Charles would have been a fool not to kiss Lee. But Hank worried anyway. He was worried that his friend was opening himself up for another let down, for another betrayal. Hank desperately hoped that the new romance wouldn't end in such a way. He didn't think Charles would be able to take another person leaving him.

From his time spent using Cerebro, Charles had created a list of mutants. He was planning on contacting them, preferably in person. He was eager to start recruiting again. He remembered fondly his recruiting trip for the CIA with Erik, almost seven months earlier. Charles was staring off into space in his study, feeling nostalgic and remembering the old times, before things turned sour, when there was a swift knock on the heavy wooden door. He knew it was Lee and invited her in. The door shut behind her, seemingly on its own, but Charles knew better.

"What have you been up to? I haven't seen you all day," she took a seat in one of the plush chairs near the desk he was sitting at. When Charles wasn't searching for mutants in Cerebro, he was spending his time with Lee, sometimes Hank would join them. They often spoke of their plans for the school. When it was just Charles and Lee, though, they talked about themselves, getting to know one another. And sometimes they didn't even talk. Lee wasn't sure what she would call her relationship with Charles. They behaved like friends, but behind closed doors, they were much more friendly.

Charles glanced down at the handwritten list sitting in front of him, then looked to Lee. "I'm planning a trip to D.C. There's a mutant there."

"When do you leave?" she asked. Though he felt bad, Charles was delighted by her disappointed tone. She would miss him, and he was thrilled by the idea of someone missing him. Though, he didn't actually plan for her to miss him.

"I was actually hoping you would go with me," he said, smiling slyly. Lee curiously eyed Charles, not sure if he was serious, though he rarely joked in such a way.

"Really?"

"It's much easier to recruit when there's more than one person. And normally I would take Hank, but some of these people don't even know what they are, let alone that there are others like them. You seem to be good with people. Three of the four schools called Marco's Pizza to hire you, you know." Lee didn't even want to know how he found that out, but was flattered. She let herself get excited about leaving the mansion for something other than the grocery, picking up dinner, or fake job interviews.

"You really think I'd be good at recruiting mutants?"

"I know I'd agree if you came knocking," he said flirtatiously, adding a wink. Lee smiled, stood from her seat, and came around the desk to stand before him. She pecked his lips and said, "When do we leave?"

They left early that Friday morning. Charles had planned for them to spend the weekend in D.C.

"Make sure they don't train by themselves, and try not to break any more windows while we're gone," Charles instructed Hank as he helped the professor load his and Lee's luggage into the trunk of the car. Charles opted to drive to D.C., as a car was much less conspicuous, and more convenient, than a jet plane. Lee stood by the car, passenger side door open, waiting for Charles. She rolled his eyes as he gave last minute instructions to Sean and Alex to behave.

He was understandably nervous about leaving the three mutants alone in the mansion, but he was behaving like such a mother. He knew Hank would be holed up in his lab all day, leaving Sean and Alex to their own devices, with no supervision. Charles tried to suppress the memory of the last time he left them alone, and came back to a destroyed statue and a broken window at Division X. He didn't even want to think about the second time he returned to see the entire building destroyed, with one person missing and one dead.

To Lee's relief, they were on the road not long after. She was excited to see more of the country, and its capital. She was also excited about meeting more mutants. And she was excited for Charles. It seemed as though his dream was about to finally come true.

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><p>Who told Michael Fassbender he looked good as a blond?<p> 


	17. XVI

My, my, my, aren't you lot lucky. Two updates within an hour. Yet, published on different dates. God, I need to adopt more regular hours.

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><p>By the time Charles and Lee arrived in D.C., it was fairly late in the evening. They picked up take-away Chinese food before checking into their hotel for the night. Lee kicked off her shoes as she tore open the bag and started eating noodles out of the box. Charles chuckled a bit to himself as he set their bags down, kicked off his own shoes and shrugged out of his blazer. They hadn't eaten since noon earlier that day, and they were both starving. Charles rolled up his sleeves, and started eating an egg roll as he walked over to the window. They had gotten enough food to feed a party of five.<p>

During the long road trip, Charles told Lee everything he could about the mutant they were looking for. He wanted her to be as prepared as possible. He had never encountered any hostility (save for the one mutton-chopped mutant he met with Erik, but that didn't even result in violence), but wanted to be prepared nonetheless.

The mutant was a young man, around the age of Sean and Alex, named Andrew, Andy for short. He was a high school student, but a poor one at that. He wasn't very social, as he ostracized himself from his fellow students. Typical for a teenage mutant, Charles noted. The teen was scared of hurting his peers on accident, as he could not control his ability. Andy was a simple telekinetic, though he had raw and untrained powers, making him quite dangerous.

Lee joined Charles at the window, chopsticks in one hand, the container of Lo Mein in the other. They stared out of the window, side by side, eating silently. Lee enjoyed the view of the capital city at night.

"I'll take you sight-seeing tomorrow morning, if you'd like," Charles offered, remembering playing chess on the steps in front of the Lincoln Memorial with Erik so long ago. Lee leant into him, accepting his offer happily. They went to bed not much later, tired from their day of traveling.

Lee woke up early the next morning to the sound of the shower being turned on. She rolled over to see the bed next to hers empty, sheets messed up and a pillow on the floor. Lee yawned and got out of bed. Somehow, despite all of the Chinese food she had eaten the night before, she was hungry again. She slipped on her shoes and a sweatshirt she found on the floor. She wasn't sure if it was hers or Charles', but didn't care. She left the room and took the elevator to the lobby. She remembered seeing a donut shop in the corner the night before. It was still early enough for there to be a good selection.

Lee stood in the elevator, practically drooling. She had never had an American donut, and was excited about trying them. They had looked so delicious in the display case. The large, unmarked white box smelled heavenly. She knew she and Charles would never be able to eat all of them, but she had gotten caught up back in the store.

Before Lee could unlock the door herself, Charles opened it for her. She was still getting used to him being a telepath. He smiled at the sight of the box of donuts. She smiled at the sight of him with wet hair and no shirt.

"How are you hungry again?" he asked incredulously at the sight of the large box of fried dough, as he let Lee into the room. She shrugged as she set the box down at the foot of his bed, ripped off the sticker holding it shut, and plucked a glazed donut.

"How do you eat these?" she asked as she eyed the pastry. Charles laughed as she experimentally tore off a piece and put it in her mouth, not waiting for his answer. The donut was still warm, and absolutely delicious. It melted in her mouth, and before she knew it, she had eaten the whole donut.

"Why don't we eat these at the mansion? Are they hard to make?" she asked as she picked up a long and twisty pastry, sprinkled with cinnamon. She had gotten a variety of pastries, eager to try them all. She ripped off a piece of the twisted pastry for a sample, and placed the rest of it back in the box. She didn't like the taste of the cinnamon one as much as the glazed donut. Charles noted her slightly disappointed expression. She had a thing for sweets.

"We don't have a deep fryer," he answered her as she sat down next to her and grabbed the rejected cinnamon twist. Lee rolled her eyes as she sampled a chocolate covered donut. She wasn't a huge fan of chocolate, but liked it better than the cinnamon twist.

Charles wiped his hands together to dust off the excess cinnamon and sugar, and stood up, intent on finding a shirt to wear. Lee stood as well, seizing her opportunity. She grabbed Charles' arm to get his attention away from his suitcase, turning him to her. She stepped into him, grabbed his wrists, and placed his hands on her hips. She smiled up at him mischievously. Charles could take a hint. He kissed her sweetly, though she deepened it as she placed her hands on either side of his face, running her right hand through his wet hair. Lee pulled away, tugging on Charles' bottom lip lightly with her teeth.

"I'm going to take a shower," she said, stepping away from him. She winked at him as she shut the bathroom door.

An hour later, Charles led Lee around the city, holding her hand. He liked the feeling of it. He liked having someone's hand to hold. It had been forever since he had a serious girlfriend. He had flings, sure, but nothing serious. He was always too busy for a relationship. He was till busy, yet somehow, Lee was fitting conveniently into his life. It was almost too good to be true.

He showed her bits of Georgetown, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial. Lee marveled at the giant white obelisk, and the giant statue of the former president. Her lack of American History kept her from fully appreciating the significance of the former president, though. Charles did his best to briefly explain. They strolled by the White House, and then it was lunchtime. They ate at a busy little café, as Charles told Lee of his plan to contact the mutant after they ate. Charles somehow knew that they boy spent his Saturday afternoons at a library near his house. Charles didn't know the name of the library, but he had seen the street sign in one of the boy's memories.

They retrieved the car from the hotel parking lot after lunch. Lee acted as navigator, doing her best to negotiate the map they had gotten form the hotel concierge as Charles drove. They did their best to navigate the weekend traffic, and eventually found their way into the suburbs of D.C. Not half an hour after leaving the hotel, were the turning left onto Candlestick Lane, the library at the end of the block. Charles parked the car, glanced reassuringly at Lee, and they made their way into the building. Charles was relieved to see the beat up red bicycle chained to one of the benches that he remembered seeing in one of the boy's thoughts. He held the door open for Lee, and they both walked into the cool, dark building, the smell of old books greeting them.

An old, bird-like woman sat behind the counter, looking up from her needlepoint to peer over her half-moon glasses to inspect the visitors. She went back to her needlepoint after inspecting the curious pair that she had never seen before, not interested enough to dwell on the subject.

Charles probed the library for a familiar thought pattern. In her time spent with Charles, Lee had learned to tell when Charles was using his power. She could feel the familiar push on the borders of her thoughts. It left almost instantly as Charles started walking towards the fiction section. Lee followed close behind, wondering what they were about to encounter.

Charles led Lee through the maze of shelves. She stopped every few steps to inspect an interesting looking book, making a point to remember the titles of the ones that interested her. She lingered too long on a book titled "The Dharma Bums", snapping her head up from the cover at the sound of Charles clearing his throat to get her attention. He was at the end of the aisle, waiting for her expectantly. She quietly apologized, returned the book, and caught up to Charles. He turned the corner to find a clearing full of tables and chairs. A single boy sat at the farthest table, back to them. His backpack was on the table in front of him, and he was reading a book. Charles looked over his shoulder at Lee.

'_Follow my lead,' _she heard Charles' voice say in her mind. She nodded once, and followed him as he emerged from the aisle and walked up to the boy's table.

"Hello, there. Are you a fan of Kesey? I haven't been able to find time to read his new novel, though I've heard wonderful things," said Charles, breaking the silence and startling the boy. He dropped his book onto the table and sat up straight in surprise. Lee noticed the mischievous smile and twinkle in Charles' eyes. The boy, Andy, looked up at Charles skeptically. He hadn't noticed Lee yet.

She watched as a frightened look spread across the boy's face, while the smile on Charles' only widened. He must have said something to him telepathically, Lee decided.

The boy's head snapped to where Lee was standing, noticing her for the first time. She smiled warmly.

"What do you guys want?" he asked angrily as he shoved his book into his backpack. He stood up and slung the bag over his shoulder, about to leave. Charles must have said something else to the boy, as he snapped his head back to him, his eyes narrowed.

"How are you doing that?" he asked hesitantly. Lee smiled. He was hooked.

"If you'd sit down, we'd love to explain," Charles said, pulling back the side of his blazer to put his hand in his pants pocket. Lee moved to stand next to Charles, trying to look as friendly as possible. The boy looked wary, but sat down anyway.

"So, you're like me?" he asked, not sure if he should be hopeful or frightened. Lee and Charles sat down across the table, exchanged looks, and smiled at Andy.

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><p>So, will this be Charles' first official recruit? Don't forget to send in ideas for what you want to see in vignette styled oneshots! I wont publish any until I'm done with the story, but it would be nice to get some ideas going.<p> 


	18. XVII

You lucky buggers. Not even twelve hours later and I'm updating again.

Thanks for all of the wonderful reviews and suggestions! I appreciate all of them. However, I should have said this before, but I'm not going to write anything particularly.. graphic. I'm like Kate Chopin. You just assume they had sex, even though I'll never come right out and say it (if you've read the Awakening, then you'll understand). Well, I might say it, but do you see a picture of Fabio anywhere? No. Ms. Perky from 10 Thins I Hate About You I am not.

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><p>Lee sat quietly next to Charles, letting him speak to Andy. She listened as he explained the aim of the mansion, and the others who were already living there. Though, he understandably left out how they came to be. That was a story for another time, if ever. Lee watched with satisfaction as Andy's hard and wary face slowly softened as he took in Charles' words. She could tell that he was really taking in what was being said to him. She snuck a glance to Charles, and tried to hide her smile as she noticed that he too had a smug and satisfied expression on his face. He was getting to Andy, and it seemed as though the trip would actually be successful.<p>

"Do you have any questions for us?" Charles finally asked, looking to Andy expectantly.

"What's your story?" the boy asked, turning slightly to face Lee directly. She stiffened, not sure what to say. She looked to Charles expectantly. He just smiled at her, giving her absolutely no hints. She was at least expecting him to say something telepathically to her, but it was just her in her own mind. Lee turned back to Andy as she thought.

"Well, my name is Amelie Bohman, I'm from Malmo, Sweden. I've only been at the mansion for a few months now," she started hesitantly, covering the basics. Andy waited for her to continue, and she suspected he wanted to know what she could do.

Charles' hand lifted from the table, startling him at first. After looking around the room for something she could manipulate, she settled for Charles' watch. It unclasped itself, slid from his wrist, and continued to float in the air as Charles' hand dropped back to the table. Andy looked impressed, and above all, happy. Ecstatic, even.

"No way," he gasped, a broad smile on his face. Lee shrugged and smiled sheepishly, not sure how to take his reaction. He was obviously pleased, but she wasn't sure by what. She always thought Charles' ability was more interesting than her own.

"Do not confuse Lee's power with your own. As we have found, mutations are never the exact same from mutant to mutant," said Charles, catching Andy's and Lee's attention.

"What do you mean?" clearly, Andy did not understand.

"Of all the things in this area, Lee chose my watch. Not your bag, or those chairs, or any of the thousands of books. Lee only has power over metal, specifically magnetic fields. As I understand, your mutation has no such limit," Charles explained, "Am I correct?"

Andy took in Charles' words, eyeing Lee. She could feel a power shift as she lost control of the watch still floating in the air. She expected it to fall, but it remained aloft. She looked from the watch to Andy. He had taken control of it, forcing her away. She smiled playfully, regaining control of the watch and returning it to Charles' wrist. Charles watched the exchange gleefully.

"So where is this mansion? I don't think I'd mind living in a place like that," Andy said interestedly.

"Upstate New York, Westchester. You would have to leave your school, but we would take care of your education, as well as training you to control your power."

Andy considered Charles' words, then stood up, slinging his bag over his shoulder again, though this time in a much less hurried fashion. Lee was shocked by the action; she was sure they had gotten through to him.

"You're explaining all of this to my dad," said Andy and he turned and walked away from the table. Charles stood quickly, pulling Lee with him by the hand to follow the boy outside of the library.

"Do you think he would be alright with this?" Lee had to ask. She knew her parents would never have agreed to such a thing. It was a fight just to go to university that was an hour's drive away.

"He doesn't know about… what I am. I would say tell him you want me for my academics, but nobody would ever believe that. I'm failing four classes," the boy shrugged, not even bothered by the fact. Lee distinctly remembered crying when she failed a geometry exam when she was sixteen. A younger Lee would have sunken into a deep depression if she had failed a class.

"Some people morally oppose this, but sometimes I find that it's in the better interest of all involved if I _influence_ him," suggested Charles. She knew he meant tampering with the boy's father's mind. She knew it was probably for the best, and was interested in seeing Charles do something besides invade her own thoughts. Charles shot her a playful glare, acknowledging that he heard that.

"You mean like, use your power?" Andy asked, unsure of the situation. Charles nodded patiently.

"Just make him think it's like, one of those nerdy gifted and talented schools, I don't know. It doesn't matter. I don't think he'll miss me much." Lee's heart broke a little.

Lee placed Andy's bike in the trunk of the car with ease, as he called "shotgun." Charles smiled at Lee playfully over the top of the car as she scowled in return. She begrudgingly took her seat in the back as Charles started the car and drove to Andy's house. The boy tried to give him directions, but quickly realized that it wasn't necessary.

They pulled up to a little duplex with an overgrown hedge next to the chipped front door. It looked like it could have been cute, with fresh paint and new landscaping. Andy waited for Lee to get his back out of the back of the car, and led them to the right side of the duplex. He pulled his backpack in front of him, searching for his key, too busy rifling through the bag to notice the soft click of the deadbolt unlocked, and the door swinging open. He looked up once he found his key to see the door already opened, and looked to Lee, a bright smile on her face.

Andy led them into the house, leaving his bike next to the front door. His father was sitting in what looked like a breakfast nook, reading the newspaper. He looked up to greet his son, but stopped short at the sight of the two strangers.

Lee watched the scene unfold. She was a spectator, not a participator. She watched as Charles briefly explained that the man's son had been selected to attend a boarding school in New York. She watched as he lifted his hand to his forehead, two fingers to his temple. The look of confusion and skepticism faded away from the father's face, as a calm complacency took its place. Andy watched the scene, surprised that it had worked, and astonished at Charles' power.

Charles lowered his hand, straightened up a bit, and smiled at a job well done.

"Pack your things, we'll pick you up at eight tomorrow morning," he instructed to Andy, who wasted no time in hastily seeing them out the door and bounding up the stairs to his room, where he started shoving everything he owned into a his backpack and duffel bag.

Lee couldn't help but smile over at Charles as he drove back to the hotel. She was impressed, and she was proud. She loved seeing him in action, and had no doubt in her mind that he was meant to do what he had just done for Andy. She could tell he was just as happy. His dream was finally taking shape.


	19. XVIII

Sorry for the unannounced hiatus! I took the weekend off, but I'm back now. Next chapter is in the works.

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><p>Andy took to Charles and Lee quickly. He spent the majority of the trip to the mansion talking. Lee had taken the front seat, after having Charles explain the way "shotgun" worked. She still failed to call it in time, but her powers were much stronger and more developed than Andy's, and she wouldn't unlock the car door until he conceded. They stopped for lunch at a burger joint, and so that Charles could call Hank to have a bedroom set up by the time they got back, for their trip had been successful. He also instructed Hank to make sure that there were appropriate toiletries in the bathroom. He remembered how odd it was that Lee smelled like cologne for her fist few days at the mansion.<p>

It seemed as if they drive home took forever. Lee sighed tiredly, eager to get up to her room and sleep, as she opened the menacing iron gates, and closed them once the car had passed through. Hank, Sean, and Alex met them in the foyer, Hank taking everyone's bags. Luckily, Charles had warned Andy ahead of time about Hank. Though, he still stared.

"Someone called for you while you were gone. Their English was really bad, but I think it was your mom. She said she was gonna mail you something," Alex told Lee. She wasn't too surprised her mother had called. It had been weeks since she last spoke to anyone in her family; she was overdue.

Lee left the group, allowing them to show Andy around the house. She took her bag from Hank and went up to her room. She didn't bother unpacking, she could do that later. She kicked off her shoes, and left the room, heading down the hall to the nearest phone. She dialed the number to her parents' house, waiting for someone to pick up. It rang several times, then went to voicemail. Lee punched the receiver and redialed the number. It rang three times until someone picked up.

"_Hallå?_" the familiar voice of Lee's mother answered.

"_Hej mamma,_" Lee greeted. Her mother cried out in delight, happy to hear from her daughter. She rambled on about how she didn't hear from her only child nearly enough, and what Lee had been missing out on. Every once in a while, Lee would mutter a noncommittal noise in response to whatever her mother was saying. Something about going to the market, seeing Mrs. Edholm at the bakery, gardening, and how she had a roast, Lee's favorite meal from her childhood, in the oven. She was trying to evoke some sort of nostalgic longing, an attempt to get Lee back home. She never dealt with Lee's moving away very well.

"_Din__kusin__är inkopplad." Your cousin is getting married. _Finally, the reason for the call.

"Cajsa* is getting married?" So shocked, Lee cried out in English. Lee had a large amount of cousins, but all of them were either already married, or far too young. Cajsa was the oldest single cousin remaining. "She just turned eighteen! To who?" Her mother started going on about how she was a proper age to marry as Charles led Andy up the stairs. Andy was busy looking around at his surroundings to pay any attention to Lee, but Charles' eyes were on her, trying to figure out why she was upset. Lee focused on her mother's words, knowing Charles wouldn't be able to understand the fast-paced Swedish.

"_lilla__Jon__Oster__föreslås," Little Jon Oster proposed, _said her mother hesitantly, for good reason.

"Oster? Are you kidding?" Charles said something quietly to Andy, and made his way over to Lee. He could tell she was upset by something, but this time, not even a simple mind probe could tell him what was wrong. He placed a gently hand on her shoulder in an effort to comfort her, even though he had no idea what was going on. Lee shrugged off his hand and turned around, her back facing him. Charles tried not to take it personally, and put his hands in his pockets, waiting for Lee to finish her conversation.

"_När?" When? _ Lee asked.

"_Nästa månad," Next month, _answered her mother. She knew her daughter would be surprised by the news, but hoped she would put aside her feelings for her cousin's happiness.

"_Ingen__bryr sig__om att han är__tre år äldre?" Nobody cares that he is three years older?_

Lee continued to argue with her mother over the phone, ignoring Charles. She heard him sigh and walk away, realizing that the conversation wasn't going to end any time soon.

"_Jag köpte__en flygbiljett. Det är i__posten._ _Du kommer att vara__en__brudtärna"I bought you a plane ticket. It's in the mail._ _You will be a bridesmaid_. Lee sighed. She wanted to see her family, she hadn't in ages, but the circumstances troubled her. She did her best to end the conversation and went back to her room.

She was on her bed, staring up at the ceiling when she heard soft knock at the door. Before she could say anything, Charles walked in. He stood at the foot of the bed, hands in his pockets.

"Was that your mother on the phone?" he asked, looking around the room. Lee sighed.

"Sorry about blowing you off. I'm feeling… conflicted." Lee covered her face with a pillow. She could hear Charles moving around the room, and felt him move onto the bed next to her. He pulled the pillow from her face, smiling down at her. He was on his side, leaning on his elbow and forearm for support.

"What has you feeling so conflicted? It seems as though I need to brush up on some Swedish," he reached over her to push her hair away from her face, his hand trailing down the side of her face, then her neck, finally resting on her shoulder. She looked up at him, returning his smile. She didn't know how to answer him. So, she lifted her head up, bringing her lips to his. She pulled his face down, forcing him to adjust his position. She held his face, as the hand that was on her shoulder moved to her hip.

"As much as I enjoy your methods, you're changing the subject," Charles pulled away from her, moving back to his original position.

"It's nothing. My cousin is getting married next month, my mom wants me to fly out for the wedding. I get to be a bridesmaid," she explained, with mock excitement. Charles chuckled once.

"Are you going to go? When was the last time you saw your family?"

"At least a year, but that's not the point."

"What is the point?" he asked, a playful glimmer in his eyes. Lee sighed.

"I'll cut to the chase. My family lives in a small community, and Cajsa is marrying the younger brother of my ex. He would have been the best man at my wedding," Lee explained.

"Ah," the playfulness in Charles' eyes vanished, as did his smile. "Does it bother you?"

"Yes," she answered honestly. Charles moved to sit up. Afraid that he was taking some sort of offense to the situation, Lee grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back down. "That family hates me and its going to be so awkward."

"You'll get through it," said Charles.

"I don't have to go. I can tell them my boss won't give me time off. What if you need my help? What if you find another mutant?"

"Am I your boss?" Charles asked, amused. Lee nodded, hoping he would agree. "Well, I think you should go." Lee frowned.

"But what if you-"

"I _am_ capable of recruiting mutants without you, though I doubt a situation that requires immediate action will arise. I can always wait until you return." There was no arguing with Charles, Lee realized. So, she waited for her plane ticket to come in the mail and did her best to busy herself with the training of the others to keep her mind off the wedding. Charles served as a good distraction, as well.

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><p>*The js in Cajsa is pronounced like a sh. I totes stole it from a contestant on America's Next Top Model. I can't remember which season, though. And I think she spelled her name differently.<p>

And sorry if the Swedish totally sucks. What am I saying 'if' for? Of course it sucks. I used Google Translate. Sorry to those of you who speak the language. I'm fairly certain that I butchered it.

And no, to those of you who are wondering, this wedding isnt going to turn in to some dramatic bullshit. You'll find out what happens soon enough.


	20. XIX

So, uh, a lot happens in this chapter.

I hope updating with two chapters tonight makes up for being MIA for a few days.

And can I just say, holy shit we're at 20 chapters! Thanks to everyone for keeping me going with all of your fabulous reviews! I appreciate every single one, even if I sometimes forget to respond to a few...

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><p>The ticket did finally come in the mail. Though she had been hoping for a direct flight, wanting to make the trip as painless as possible, Lee ended up disappointed. Inside the envelope was a plane ticket to Hamburg, Germany, and a train ticket to Stockholm.<p>

Charles drove her to the airport the day of her flight. He helped her check her bag, and reluctantly let her go, but not without a kiss Lee wasn't going to forget. He watched her until he lost sight of her in the crowd, then headed back to the mansion, not eager to spend the week without Lee.

Lee fell asleep on the plane, having stolen a sleeping aid from Charles' medicine cabinet. The stewardess had to shake her awake when the plane landed in West Germany. She groggily retrieved her bag from luggage claim and found a cab to take her to the train station. By the time she got there, she was starving and found a café inside the station. The lunch crowd was thick, forcing Lee to wait in a long line. She had hours until her train left, though. She ordered a sandwich and a coffee to wake her up for her next leg of travel and scanned the area for an empty table.

She would have to settle for sharing a table with a stranger, as there were none. She looked around the area for an empty chair and a friendly looking person to share a table with. Her eyes landed on a blonde woman, idly stirring her coffee and looking down at a magazine.

"_Kann ich__sitzen?" Can I sit? _Lee always struggled with German, but managed to find the right words. The woman's head snapped up at the interruption, her expression confused.

"I'm sorry, I don't speak German…"

"Oh, good. That's about as much as I know," Lee smiled down at the woman. "Mind if I sit? Everywhere else is full," Lee gestured towards the empty chair across from the woman. The blonde looked around the café quickly and nodded, straightening up in her chair.

Lee sat down and unwrapped her sandwich, taking a large bite. The woman across from her sipped at her coffee. Lee couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen the woman before. As if in a photo or something. She was sure she had never met her before, though.

"My name is Lee," she said, breaking the silence between the two. She was curious about the woman sitting before her, and wondered where she had seen her face before.

"Raven," replied the blonde. Lee blanched. She studied Raven, realized that she knew her from an old photograph in Charles' bedroom. She was much younger in the photo, as was Charles, but she still recognized her.

"Huh, small world," said Lee, taking another bite of her sandwich.

"What do you mean?" asked Raven suspiciously. The spoon in Raven's coffee cup began stirring itself, loudly clattering against the sides of the cup to grab Raven's attention. She looked down at the spoon, then began to frantically search the café for the source.

"Sorry, didn't mean to freak you out. I'm like you," explained Lee, stopping the spoon, trying to calm down Raven. She misunderstood the blonde woman's frantic searching.

Raven's gaze settled on Lee.

"You did that?" she questioned, not sure if she should believe the strange woman sitting in front of her. Lee smiled and nodded. She wasn't sure yet if she wanted to reveal their connection.

"How do you know what I am?" Raven whispered across the table, suspicion rising again. Lee considered how best to answer Raven's question.

"I just had a feeling," said Lee, deciding to take the cryptic and vague route. Raven smiled.

"Do you have time before your train leaves?" Raven asked. Lee nodded.

"Loads."

"Perfect, I want you to meet someone," Raven stood up and grabbed Lee's hand, dragging her through the crowded café and through the train station. Lee looked back longingly at her unfinished sandwich, but went with Raven.

She led Lee to a bench where a dark haired man in a brown leather jacket and another blonde woman in a white dress were sitting. The woman looked up at Raven and Lee, causing the man to look up as well. They both smiled.

"Guys, this is Lee. She's like us," she said excitedly to the man and woman, pulling Lee alongside her. Raven was smiling brightly, looking between Lee and the two people seated on the bench.

"Hello," greeted Lee with a small wave.

"Lee, this is Erik and Emma. We're all mutants," she said proudly. Lee did her best to contain her surprise. The woman named Emma looked Lee up and down, while Erik studied her face.

It was Erik. He was sitting right in front of her. Erik Lensherr, the man who caused so much pain and anger in the lives of Lee's new friends. She wanted to be sick. Or yell at him. But she kept her mouth shut, and waited for someone else to say something.

"And what can you do?" he asked. Lee didn't know why he was bothering to ask. Charles told her about Emma, and what she could do. Lee wondered why Erik just didn't ask her instead.

"Something about magnetic fields. Someone explained the science of it to me once, but I didn't really understand. I move metal, basically. Or at least the magnetic ones," she explained, her nerves getting the best of her. She wasn't comfortable around these people. Emma's intense gaze wasn't making her feel any better. Lee was sure that she was sifting through her mind.

Erik ignored Emma's intense studying of the new mutant before them, and grinned. Never had he before met anyone with the same mutation as another mutant, or even heard of such a case.

"Is that so?" he asked amusedly. Lee nodded. "Well, it seems we have something in common." He smiled again.

Lee looked from Erik, to Emma, to Raven.

"I need to… I have to go," Lee muttered, and turned away from the group, no idea where she was going.

"She's one of them," she heard Emma tell Erik.

"Wait!" cried Raven. Lee could hear her footsteps running towards her. She felt Raven's hand on her shoulder, and turned around.

"You know Charles?" she asked, breathless. Her eyes were wide in hope.

"Yeah," Lee nodded. A reluctant smile spread across Raven's features.

"How is he?" she asked.

"He's good. He's keeping busy. He misses you," said Lee quietly, not sure how much she should reveal. She still couldn't believe who she was talking to. Lee could see Erik approaching past Raven's shoulder. Emma was still seated on the bench, her arms crossed and an annoyed expression clear across her pretty face.

"Erik! She knows Charles!" Raven turned to the tall older man excitedly. He looked down at her, then turned his gaze to Lee. He wasn't as excited as Raven.

"How do you know our old friend?" he asked Lee.

"He found me. I live with him and the others now," Lee explained as simply as she could, not eager to give up too many details.

"So he's recruiting mutants now?" Erik asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was the first since… There's been one more after me. He's around the age of Sean and Alex."

"They're still there? What about Hank?" Raven asked, eager to know how her old friends were. Lee nodded. She didn't feel like Raven really deserved to know too many details. If she wanted to know, then she could find out for herself.

Erik didn't seem to take the news as a threat against him, and visibly relaxed. "I'm sure Charles has told you all about us," said Erik dryly.

"A bit, yeah," said Lee, matching Erik's tone.

"So, you guys have the same power. How crazy is that?" laughed Raven, looking to change the subject. She was starting to feel guilty again, and she needed a distraction.

"It is quite rare," said Erik.

"It's not the same. According to Hank, at least. He and Charles did some tests, and tried to explain probability and genetic mutations to me, but I didn't really understand. Though, I did get the part that we bare no similarities," said Lee coldly. She didn't like Erik.

"Just like Charles, going on about something boring and scientific," said Raven, nostalgia dripping from every word. She had a dreamy smile on her face, thinking of the past with Charles. She didn't notice Erik's stern look. He wasn't amused be Lee.

"If you're so loyal, what are you doing in Germany?" questioned Erik.

"I don't let my beliefs get between my family and I," she said coldly. She wanted to end the conversation. She wanted to leave the station, and forget that she ever met Erik or Raven. She wasn't normally a rude person, and felt guilty at Raven's saddened expression. She looked as if she were about to cry, and guilt was spread across Erik's face.

Lee lost a bit of her resolve, noticing that Raven looked like she was about to cry. "Is there anything you want me to tell him? A message to pass along?" she asked, a bit of warmth in her voice. Raven sighed.

"I'm sorry and I miss him. He's really doing OK?" Lee nodded, taking in Raven's words and answering her question.

Lee didn't know what exactly to think about her encounter. She sat on the train, considering what happened. She vaguely remembered being interested in meeting Erik, long before she understood what he did to Charles. She had been interested in meeting the person who she shared something so significant with. What she said to Erik in the station was partly true. There was a key difference in their mutations, but they were still so similar. It was remarkable how similar they were. But the similarities between Erik and Lee ended there. She wanted so much to be nothing like Erik.

She was surprised by Raven. She didn't think she would be so kind. For some reason, Lee imagined her being a callous and bitter girl. But she could tell that Raven still cared about Charles. Lee was still disgusted that someone could hurt someone that they cared about so much about so badly, and still care so much about them. She couldn't understand how Raven could do what she did to Charles, and still act so concerned for him.

The train ride was long, but Lee had a lot to think about. She had successfully been distracted from her own family troubles, but was quickly reminded of them as the train pulled into its final stop, and Lee could see through the window her father standing on the platform, waiting for her.

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><p>Sorry if the small amount of German was terrible. Seriously, I need a Spanish speaking character. I would so totally be able to write that dialogue no problemo.<p>

But more importantly, Lee finally meets the man she's been compared to! And she is less than impressed. Also kind of a bitch, but that's what protective girlfriends do, I suppose. Comment on it?


	21. XX

This would have been up sooner, but I decided to re-read Atonement instead of writing. I cried. A lot. Time to watch the movie and cry some more! Seriously, James McAvoy dying of blood poisoning makes me cry like a baby. I love tragic love stories. I love stories that end sadly. Something must be wrong with me, because happy endings are boring, and I just love it when something ends in death or destruction. I'm some sort of literary masochist, I think.

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><p>The car ride to Lee's parents'house was long and awkward. Lee never got along particularly well with her father. HE had always hoped for a son, and ended up with Lee. When she was a child, she was as delicate and frilly as could be. She eventually grew out of that, though she never managed to bond with her father. She loved him, and she knew he felt the same, but there wasn't much for them to talk about.<p>

They chatted about Lee's new life briefly. She withheld a lot of details of what she was really doing. She said she was working in a school, in admissions, in New York. It was a boarding school for special students, and Lee's father took that to mean academically distinguished students. He had no idea what a mutant was, had never even heard of one, and Lee would keep it that way. He was old fashioned. He didn't even think Lee needed to go to university, and that breaking off an engagement with a businessman was the worst mistake of her young adult life.

He didn't even ask about her personal life, if she was making new American friends or if she had any romantic interests. Lee was grateful for that, because she didn't exactly want to tell him everything. She and Charles were always very discreet in the mansion, never indulging in any public displays of affection. They never even talked about it. She decided it would just be easiest not to mention anything to her family.

Lee was greeted by her frantic mother. She was busy cleaning the house and preparing dinner. Lee found out that besides her daughter, Mrs. Bohman was also hosting other members of the family, and a few family friends that were in town for the wedding. Lee holed herself up in her old bedroom to avoid being roped into cleaning or helping cook.

Lee sat on her bed, the room cast in an orange glow from the setting sun peaking through the eyelet lace curtains. The walls were a pale blue, the floor a dark stained hardwood. The desk had belonged to her grandmother when she was little, as had the bed frame one of the bedside tables. The other bedside table came from her dad's childhood home. The dresser was from an antique shop in town, and the vanity had been a birthday present when she turned sixteen. All of the furniture had been painted the same eggshell white to mask the fact that none of them matched. An old quilt that had seen better days was draped over the foot of the bed. It was made by Lee's great grandmother. She hated it. It was ugly and smelled funny, but provided great warmth in the cold winter months.

The walls were covered in framed photos, an old needlepoint, and a world map over her bed. Two watercolor paintings of flower arrangements painted by her grandmother on her mother's side hung by the window. It felt odd to be in her old room. Nothing had changed at all, yet Lee was a far cry from her teenage self. She had changed a lot, she realized.

Lee sat through dinner quietly. Her great Aunt Brigit and Uncle Bjorn pestered her with questions, but mostly piled on the guilt that she didn't visit or write them enough. Lee's grandmother kept piling food onto her plate, saying Lee was far too bony, and no man would ever want to marry a sack of bones. The entire family seemed as if they were fixated on marriage. Cajsa was the last cousin, besides her thirteen year old sister and Lee, to marry. The family was sparing no expense to create a huge, memorable wedding. Lee decided that they had given up on her. She had her change and she blew it. She couldn't help but think that she wouldn't invite half of the people attending Cajsa's wedding to her own, if she ever got engaged again.

Great Aunt Brigit finally got it out of Lee that she was seeing someone. The news seemed to excite the entire family. They grilled her for details. They wanted to know what he looked like, if she had pictures, what his job was, where he was from, what sort of family did he come from, how did she meet him, if they were planning on getting married. That seemed to be what everyone was most concerned with, especially when they heard he was wealthy, and highly educated. Charles sounded like a good, strong man that could provide for Lee and their family, which Lee had better hurry up on, as her grandmother wasn't getting any younger.

The family was laughing in the living room over coffee about how they hoped this man wouldn't want an English wedding. Lee slipped out of the house unnoticed, the last thing she heard being Brigit's high-pitched laugh, and her Uncle Bjorn mocking an English accent.

Lee forgot how boisterous her family could be. And she hadn't even seen all of them yet. They were loud and incredibly vocal about their expectations of the younger generation. Lee pushed all thoughts of how she had disappointed her family as she walked down the street. It was dark, but the streets weren't deserted. There was still a fair bit of traffic. Lee was glad. She wanted to be away from her family, but didn't want to be alone.

She briefly considered finding a payphone and calling Charles, when she spotted a lost looking blonde woman across the street. It was Raven. Lee looked up and down the street for Erik or Emma, but decided that Raven must have been alone, or else she wouldn't have looked so lost.

Lee quickly crossed the street to confront her. She thought it a safe bet that Raven had followed her.

"What are you doing here?" asked Lee, startling Raven. Lee's accent was thick, having spent the day with her family. She noted with mild interest that Raven looked relieved to see her.

"Thank god, I've been looking for you," she said. She was smiling. Lee wasn't sure why, she hadn't been very nice to her. She didn't think she deserved a smile.

"What for?"

"I was hoping we could talk." Raven looked at Lee expectantly. "I'm alone," she added. Lee caved and agreed to talk to her, leading the way to a bench outside of a cobbler's closed store. Lee vaguely remembered bringing her favorite black patent leather pumps to the store when she was eighteen, and the heel had snapped off of one of the shoes. The owner did good work for a fair price, but that was irrelevant. Lee turned her attention back to Raven. Lee had to admit, she was interested in what Raven had to say. She assumed that it had something to do with Charles, though.

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><p>I hate this chapter. I'm not very proud of it.<p> 


	22. XXI

I watched part of the live stream of the HP7 part 2 premier in London today, and cried my eyes out at the speeches Dan, Emma, Rupert, and Rowling gave. And have since been sitting in my dark room, listening to the Amelie score all night, writing this. Too many sad things are going on. First Atonement, then the end of my childhood, beautiful French music, and thinking about how much of a dick Erik was to Charles. And how Raven is a virgin who can't drive*.

*That was way harsh, Ty.

Damnit, now I'm sad because of Brittany Murphy.

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><p>It took Raven a while to start talking. Lee sat quietly, patiently waiting.<p>

"Does he ever talk about me?" she finally asked hopefully.

"Once. After a bottle of wine."

"What about Hank? How is he?" Lee noticed that Raven seemed almost hopeful that Hank and Charles missed her. She was self absorbed. She wanted to hear that her friend and brother were hurting without her in their lives. Lee was repulsed.

"What do you want me to say? They're fine, everyone is fine. No thanks to you, might I add." Lee fought to keep her anger in check. She didn't get angry often, but Raven was pushing her to the edge. She didn't know why, though. She had never met Raven before their encounter in the train station. She never did anything to Lee personally.

Raven frowned and turned away from Lee. She could tell that the blonde was about to cry.

"I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt," she said in a small, quiet voice.

"Can I ask you something?" Lee asked, ignoring Raven's emotional reaction. "What did you hope to accomplish by leaving?" Lee didn't wait for a response. Unable to look at her, she turned her gaze to across the street. She was studying the front of a closed framer, awaiting Raven's response.

"What do you mean?" Lee heard Raven sniffle, and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Raven was playing dumb. Lee sighed.

"Look, I didn't mean for any of that stuff to happen. I never wanted Charles to get hurt! I didn't-"

"But he did. Getting shot wasn't your fault. Being abandoned by his only family was," interrupted Lee. She got the feeling that Raven didn't exactly get it, and she intended to make it clear to her.

"I feel terrible about what happened. I think about it every day. I didn't want to hurt him, he just didn't understand," said Raven, waiting a few moments to respond to Lee.

"I don't think you understand, either. But I'm not going to explain it to you, it's not my problem."

"You're right, I don't even know what I'm doing here," Raven wiped away her tears and straightened out her skirt. She looked like she was about to leave. Lee sighed again. She didn't like Raven, but she felt obligated to set her straight.

"You made your decision. You can either live with it, or make it right. Your call." Lee noticed out of the corner of her eye, a man standing on the street corner at the end of the block. It was Erik. "Wait here."

Lee stood, leaving Raven alone and wondering where she was going, until she saw Erik down the street. Lee was heading right for him. She stopped a few paces away from him, staring him down. He looked down at her expectantly. He was much taller. Lee closed the gap, pulled back her arm, and punched Erik in the right shoulder as hard as she could.

"_R__övhål!" _ Lee swore at him. She took a deep breath, and took a step back, as Erik rubbed at his shoulder.

"Do you feel better now?" he asked patiently. He knew he deserved it.

"No." Lee felt like she should have aimed for his face, but knew that wouldn't accomplish anything. Raven at least acted like she cared about Charles, whereas Erik was seemingly emotionless.

"I take it that this means you've chosen your side," said Erik.

"What do you mean?" Lee hadn't realized there were sides. She knew Erik did not trust easily, and had some sort of fear that mutants would become societal outcasts, hated and feared by the public. Lee had that fear, too, but she certainly didn't take it as far as Erik did. She trusted that all would turn out well enough in the end.

Erik scowled down at her. He looked as if he was about to explain a simply concept to a dim child.

"Are you going to roll over and complacently let humans destroy us, or are you going to resist? Are you going to fight against them, or for them?" Lee could sense a deep hatred and anger stewing below the surface in Erik.

"In other words, you or Charles?" Lee summarized. She hadn't realized it was going to be so black and white. Erik nodded, as if she was finally starting to understand. It reminded her of a random memory, of Hank trying to explain a bit of math to Sean.

"I'll do as I please," she answered simply. She hadn't intended to talk about her allegiance when she walked up to Erik, and wanted to make that part of the conversation as brief as possible. "I don't want to talk about politics."

"Then what do you want to talk about?" He shoved his hands in the pockets of his dark trousers, and waited for Lee to speak.

"He cared about you."

"So?" Lee could tell Erik didn't want to discuss his relationship with Charles. She didn't want to upset him, to make an enemy of him, but she certainly did want him to feel guilty.

"All I'm trying to say is, don't burn that bridge just yet. We can't afford to divide ourselves." Erik looked as if he was considering her words, but she didn't give him a chance to respond. She turned around and walked back to the bench where Raven was still sitting.

"Sorry if I was terrible, I'm under a bit of stress. But I think you're stupid for giving up your only family," said Lee, looking down at Raven. Without another word, Lee went back home. Her family was conversing loudly in the sitting room. A bottle of wine had been opened. Lee wasn't sure if she wanted to go up to her room and be alone, or to join her family, as they were her only family, and she had a feeling she wouldn't be seeing them for a long time after the wedding.

Lee sat down on the arm of the chair her great Aunt Brigit was sitting in, and forced herself into the conversation. The old woman patted Lee's hand and smiled up at her. Lee drank a half a glass of wine with her family, and went to bed soon after. She was tired. As she waited to fall asleep in her old bed, she briefly considered calling Charles. She wasn't sure if she should tell him about her encounter. The decision weighed heavily on her mind as she struggled to fall asleep.

The week back home was spent putting together bouquets of lilies of the valley and jonquils. Cajsa's grandmother wove a crown of ribbons to be worn with the veil, and all of the aunts busied themselves preparing the reception dinner. Lee had been forced into helping set up the tent in her Aunt Julia's garden. She watched as all of the male cousins erected the tent, then busied herself setting up tables and chairs. Somehow, she had been put in charge of placing all of the name plates on the correct spots, following a detailed seating chart that Cajsa's mother, Monika, had come up with. It was tedious work, but it was better than polishing silver, like the younger cousins were forced to do.

During all of the wedding preparations, Lee only saw her ex fiancé once. They awkwardly made eye contact across the lawn once, when she looked up from her place card job and saw him walking out of the back door. He had run off around the side of the house to avoid her, as she threw herself back into her mindless work. She didn't want to think of him. But Lee knew she would see him at the rehearsal, ceremony, and reception.

Lee's bridesmaid's dress was a horrible butter yellow color. The skirt ended just below her knees, and had a cap sleeve that made Lee's shoulders look impossibly wide. The waist was cinched together with a lavender sash, that tied in the back in a large bow. All of the bridemaid's had been given malva blooms to put in their hair.

Lee sat at her vanity, pinning up her hair, listening to her mother and aunts scream at each other downstairs. Everyone was frantic, as the ceremony was only house away. Lee pushed her bedroom door shut by the metal of the doorknob and tried to ignore her loud family. As she swept a bit of powder over her cheeks, she wondered how she, a naturally quiet person, had come from such a loud family.

Due to her clarity and complete lack of stress over the wedding, Lee was ready to go well before anyone else. She sat in her room quietly, thinking how she would never force her bridesmaids to wear such an ugly dress, or the dreadful white pumps to go with it. She wouldn't have a seating chart, either.

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><p>I feel like this sort of makes up for such a crappy filler chapter.<p>

Oh, and _rövhål _is a naughty Swedish word. I love bad words in different languages. Hell, I love bad words in any language.


	23. XXII

I tried to do some research on how old Charles is supposed to be in First Class, but I can't find anything. So, let's assume he was ten-ish at the beginning, in 1944. Eighteen years later makes him 31-32-ish in 1962-62.

The italics dialogue is meant to indicate that they're speaking a different language. Rather than translating an entire conversation, I chose this method.

And I painted my nails a really pretty lavender color (which doesn't actually look very good my summer tan, but it's too pretty to not keep), and ruined a few of my nails for this. I'll re-apply a coat when I'm done posting, I suppose.

**Edit: Thank you so much to Beautiful Angel x3 who informed me that Charles was born in 1937. So he's a delightful 26. However, this is much too young for my purposes. Let's just say everyone is in their late twenties and keep it vague, shall we?

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><p>Lee had narrowly escaped having to walk down the aisle with her ex. The procession of bridesmaids had been organized by height. He was significantly taller than her, and was paired with Lee's cousin Mary. Lee had been paired with the groom's friend, Peter. He wasn't a terribly attractive man. She waited, bored, at the altar for the bride and groom to enter the church. She strained her neck to see over the crowd of standing guests to see who entered the church first, but she couldn't tell. Knowing Cajsa, she let Jon enter first. She lacked a back bone.<p>

What Lee could see, however, was that Cajsa walked funnily down the aisle. She looked uncomfortable, like she couldn't walk correctly. Lee assumed it was because of the coins in her shoes.

The ceremony had been rather traditional. The vows were typical promises of love, respect, and faithfulness.

Lee always hated weddings. What she was really waiting for was the reception. Lee didn't realize how much she missed home cooked meals until the trip. Her mother made Lee's favorite meals from her childhood. She didn't want to think about how much food she actually ate, especially at the reception. It wasn't that she didn't eat well at the mansion. Just, the meals were simple, as none of the residents knew how to cook anything past boiling pasta and warming up premade sauce, or ordering in. Lee decided she would have to get copies of recipes before she left.

After several glasses of champagne, Lee kicked off her heels and joined the party. She danced with her father, a few cousins, and some guests she had never met before. She sang along to all of the drinking songs and ate far too much cake. All of the toasts and speeches were nice, especially the ones given towards the end of the ceremony, once everyone was thoroughly drunk.

Lee was sitting at her table, eating a second piece of cake when two neighbors at the table returned, each with a fresh glass of champagne and a piece of cake. They were Lee's cousins Mary and Caroline, both bridesmaids.

"_So, Amelie, tell us about your boyfriend! Auntie Brigit says you've got yourself an American!" _ cried Mary after a large sip of champagne.

"_And a professor! How old is he? I didn't know you liked older men," _said Caroline, as she raised her eyebrow suggestively.

"_He's not much older than I am. There's about a year's difference. And he's English. He grew up in America, and lives there now, but went to Oxford,"_ Lee didn't see much harm in telling people about Charles. In fact, she kind of wanted to brag about him. She couldn't give very many details, but talking about him somehow helped her deal with him not actually being there.

"_Oh! I love their accents! Does he wear tweed blazers and smoke a pipe? I always imagine English professors doing that!" _Caroline was a bit ditzy, as she was much younger than Lee. She was a huge flirt, even though she had been married for a year, and she loved to gossip. Lee had no doubt that anything she said at that table would spread to the entire family by the end of the night, and the community the next day.

"_How did you two meet? What's his name again, Charles?"_ Asked Mary, not giving Lee time to correct Caroline.

"_Yeah. We met in a bagel shop in New York City,"_ Lee lied. She couldn't exactly tell them the story of how he shouted at her on the sidewalk from his car, or that he was a telepath and found her.

"_What's a bagel?" _asked Caroline as she poked at her cake.

"_What does he teach?"_ Mary asked, again forcing Lee to ignore Caroline's question.

"_He's starting his own school. He doesn't teach a class, so I guess he's the headmaster,"_ Lee had never really thought about what Charles' official title was until she was asked.

"_Brigit says you're getting married! Oh, please have your wedding in England! I've always wanted to go! I don't think I'd be able to stand such a long trip to America, anyways,"_ said Caroline. Lee sighed. Great Aunt Brigit always embellished things a bit.

"_No, we're not. We haven't even been together that long! There will be no wedding. Or at least any time soon."_

"_So you want to marry him?"_ asked Mary, reading too much into Lee's words.

"_No. I don't know. It's too soon to tell. I mean, I really care about him, but we've only known each other for a few months, and he's got a lot on his plate. I don't think I'm ready for that,"_ Lee explained. Her cousins questions had her thinking of marriage, which was something she did not want to think about. She didn't want to plan another wedding, or go through the whole ordeal again. She wasn't even sure if she had a future with Charles. She had never given it much thought. She didn't even know if she loved him. It hadn't even been two months since that first kiss in the kitchen of the mansion.

"_Girls! Don't you look gorgeous! Lee, sweet heart, I hope your taking notes for when you finally get a ring from that professor of yours!"_ Great Aunt Brigit drunkenly interrupted the cousins' conversation, sitting down across from the girls, sloshing champagne over the edge of the glass.

"_I'm not getting married, Aunt Brigit,"_ sighed Lee. She was starting to get tired of everyone assuming that because she was dating someone, there was a wedding in the near future.

"_Though, I'm sure you well remember all the plans from your first almost-wedding. Shame that never happened; it would have been beautiful. And that gown! I suppose it'd be bad luck to wear that for the next wedding. Your mother still has it, you know, in the attic,"_ she said, ignoring Lee's correction, then taking a large gulp of her champagne. Lee frowned. Caroline and Mary looked at Lee pityingly. Everyone in the family knew that a drunk great Aunt Brigit was not the nicest person. She said whatever she wanted to, with no regard to how others would react.

"_There you are, Brigit!"_ cried another older woman who appeared to be as drunk as Brigit. Lee recognized her to be of the Osten family, but couldn't remember her name.

"_Amelie! I haven't seen you since your wedding shower! My, you've gotten quite old, haven't you? Tell me, have you gotten married yet?"_ said the woman loudly as she clutched the back of one of the chairs next to Brigit for support.

"_She hasn't! Can you believe it? The girl's 23 years old! She better get a ring out of that American teacher she's seeing, unless she calls that off, too!"_ Another one of the Osten family members joined in on the conversation. Lee had never met her before, but had seen a picture of her in her ex fiancé's parents' house. Lee didn't even bother to correct the woman on her age, or her description of Charles'. She realized it was better to take the judgment quietly than to argue and defend herself against a bunch of drunken old women.

"_Fillipa! Have some class! Look at her! Lee's beautiful! She could have any man she wanted. There's no rush,"_ defended Aunt Brigit. Lee turned her dull stare from the woman named Fillipa to her great aunt in astonishment. She was both surprised and exceedingly grateful that she was being defended.

The woman named Fillipa looked offended, as she scowled down at Brigit, then turned her icy stare towards Lee. The first Osten woman sat down, eager to see the drama unfold before her shamelessly. Fillipa stood her ground.

"_That girl's different, I tell you. And not in a charming way! She's off, I can tell by looking at her. She old and she's weird. Not a good combination for a bride, I say."_

"_Well, good thing I didn't marry into your family. I'm not some old spinster! I've got a boyfriend, not that it's any of your business. He's intelligent, caring, considerate, and has a delicious looking ass. I mean, he's gorgeous. And fit. God, that body,"_ shouted Lee. She had been drinking too much to care about how vulgar she was being. Most of it was for shock value. She had never seen Charles without any clothing, other than the one time in D.C. when he wasn't wearing a shirt. Fillipa looked as if Lee had shouted a string of profanity in a church, or done something just as foul. She, the other Osten, and Brigit looked horrified and offended.

"_Well, I'm certainly glad Hugo never married you! You are utterly vile! Your family should be ashamed. Never, in all my years have I-"_ Lee stood and walked away from the table before she could hear the rest of Fillipa's insults. Lee was sure she would get in trouble and regret what she said the next morning, but for that night, she felt good. She stood up for herself. She was for once and for all, finally glad that she did not take the Osten name. She had always had a few doubts during the years, a few remaining 'what if's, but she was finally sure that she had made the right decision.

Lucky for Lee, her flight left the next day, not giving her mother enough time to scold and punish her for her outburst at the reception. Her mother and father were too busy fussing over her, making sure she had enough money, that she was happy where she was living, that she was making good friends, that she really loved her job and this professor, before seeing her off.

There were bad storms in Germany, forcing Lee to wait in the Hamburg airport for five hours. She had called the mansion to tell Charles, so he wouldn't be waiting for her for hours outside of the airport. She was hoping desperately to talk to Charles himself, but Alex answered the phone and promised he would pass on the message.

When her plane finally touched down in New York City, Lee felt like she was going home, rather than that she had left it. It felt odd to her, that she was considering New York her home. But it felt comfortable, and refreshing. She never felt terribly comfortable in London, and it was a far cry from her home. Malmo had been her home for so long, but once she realized what she was, she didn't feel like she belonged there any more. She didn't fit. Her mutation changed her, and for the first time in her adult life, Lee was going home.

It was lightly raining in New York. Lee briefly entertained the idea that the storms were following her from Germany until she spotted Charles through the crowd. He was already heading towards her, as he had a much more efficient method of finding a single person in a crowded airport. When he reached her, Lee dropped her bag and threw her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek multiple times. He laughed, pulled away to loosen Lee's grip around his neck, and kissed her fully. They would have stayed that way longer, if it wasn't for someone in the crowd bumping Lee's back, reminding the couple that they were in a crowded public place. After exchanging greetings, Charles took Lee's bag and lead her to the car, and drove her home.

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><p>Almost done with next chapter! And can I just say, CHARLES. OH GOD, IT'S CHARLES. HE'S BAAAAAAACK!<p> 


	24. XXIII

I lied again. Sorry to everyone that I said this would be up sooner to. I was unforeseeabley busy today. But, on the bright side, I became a true Texan and went to a country dance hall for the first time. I'm terrible at it, though... So terrible.

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><p>Traffic was bad on the way to the mansion, due to the weather, giving Lee plenty of time to tell Charles about her trip. She hadn't made up her mind on whether or not she would tell him about Raven and Erik, but she had no chance of keeping a secret from a telepath. Because the issue weighed so heavily on her mind, it wasn't hard for Charles to pick up on it.<p>

"What did they want from you?" he asked.

"Nothing. I approached her because there weren't any empty tables. I didn't realize who it was until it was too late." Said Lee, fully committed to telling the truth. "She followed me to Sweden. She wanted to hear about you. I think it means that they don't have much of an agenda yet, if they had the time for such a detour."

"What did you tell her?" he asked, after several moments of silence. Charles wasn't entirely sure he wanted to hear it. He had become used to the idea of life without Raven. And then, she reappears. Charles wasn't really sure how to feel about it. He was glad that she was doing well, and that she still cared about him. From what Lee had told him, it sounded like she wasn't angry with him. But he was angry with her.

If Raven so desperately wanted to know how he was doing, though Charles, why didn't she ask him for herself? He wasn't one to hold grudges. He didn't blame her for what happened between them, or for her choices. She was his sister, and he would always care about her. Charles was hurt that she was taking the easy way out.

Lee described the two conversations she had with Raven to Charles, until the pulled in front of the mansion. Charles turned off the engine of the car, but made no move to exit the car. He turned to Lee, and looked as if he was about to say something but decided against it.

He wanted to thank her. He wasn't sure why, or what for. Perhaps because she defended him, she said things he wanted to say, she had chosen him.

"I punched Erik." He chuckled lightly in response.

Charles decided that instead of saying something, he would just show her his appreciation. He leaned over the console, cupped each of Lee's cheeks with his hands and kissed her. He vaguely felt her hands at the sides of his torso, as she deepened the kiss.

Lee missed Charles, and she couldn't control herself. She never wanted to stop kissing him. She never wanted him to let her go, to stop holding her. She liked the feel of his hands on her, and pulled him closer to her, or as close as she could in the car. Charles had to brace himself by removing one of his hands from Lee to rest on the passenger side door, which effectively brought him closer to Lee. He was practically on her side of the car when became aware of an audience. Charles pulled away, returning to the driver's seat, shooting a glare up at Sean who was at a second story window laughing. Sean knew he had been caught and fled the scene.

Lee couldn't help but laugh. She pecked Charles on the cheek then got out of the car. Charles followed her into the foyer with her bag in hand.

"Thank god you're back," said Alex as he walked into the foyer to greet Lee. Hank was right behind him, and Sean was coming down the stairs. A few seconds later, Andy appeared from upstairs.

"Seriously. Professor X was a crazy slave driver without you distracting him. Do you know how far he made me run on Wednesday?" cried Sean, throwing his arms around Lee, purposefully making a show of it. Lee giggled and hugged Sean back.

"You big baby, you probably deserved it." Sean stepped away in mock offense.

"How was seeing your family?" Hank asked.

"Oh, I need a drink before I can talk about that. When's the next meal? I don't even know what time it is, but I'm starving," said Lee.

"We ordered pizza. Again," sighed Alex. "It'll be here soon."

"Are you sure you don't want to rest? You've been traveling all day," asked Hank.

"I'm fine. I slept like a baby on the plane. Besides, I've missed you guys!" Lee patted Hank's cheek as she walked passed him and headed towards the kitchen after picking up her bag and bringing it with her. Everyone followed her.

"So, what's Sweden like?" asked Sean, sitting across from Lee at the table in the kitchen. Alex had gone to the door to greet the pizza delivery man.

"Terrible. I brought presents!"

"Lee ran in to our old friends in a German train station," said Charles as she knelt beside her bag and rummaged around for the bag of souvenirs she brought home for everyone.

"Who?" asked Sean stupidly.

"You mean… Magneto and Mystique?" Hank asked hesitantly, afraid to say their real names. Charles nodded.

"Oh, damn. That sucks," said Sean. Charles shot him a pointed look in warning of his vocabulary.

"What did they want from you?" asked Hank. Alex walked into the room, carrying three large pizza boxes. He dropped them in the center of the table. Nobody bothered with plates.

"Nothing. It was coincidence, nothing more."

"What was?" asked Alex.

"Lee saw Raven, and met our dear friend Magneto," informed Sean, eager to hear the story.

"Did they talk to you?" Alex asked before taking a large bite out of a slice of pepperoni pizza.

"Yeah. They were kind of nice. I was a bit rude, though. Call it bias," said Lee with a shrug, reaching for a slice of plain cheese pizza.

"I'd say it was more than bias. Tell them what you did," urged Charles. As much as he opposed violence, the idea of Lee punching Erik was humorous.

"What?"

"You know what," he pushed.

"Oh, that. It's nothing. I hit him," Lee shrugged again. She didn't think it was a big deal. The punch hardly effected Erik.

"You hit Magneto?" asked Sean, incredulous.

"Actually, I punched him."

"You punched him?" Sean shouted. He leaned over the table and held his hand up to give Lee a high five. She obliged him.

"Is this the metal guy? The evil one that has the same power as you?" Andy asked, speaking up for the first time. Everyone nodded, not willing to say any more. Andy had been told by Sean and Alex about Cuba, and their time at the CIA, even though they weren't supposed to.

Lee dropped her crust in the first empty pizza box, wiped her hands on a napkin, and pulled the bag of souvenirs onto her lap, rummaging through it. She was tired of talking about Erik and Raven, and wanted to move on from the subject.

Lee pulled out five small packages wrapped in tissue paper. She had to feel the shapes of the packages to determine what they were, and passed them out accordingly. The boys all opened them together. Charles ripped off the piece of tape holding the package together and neatly unfolded the paper, while everyone else simply tore away at the paper.

Hank's gift was a small corked bottle with a tiny Viking ship inside it, and a sack of Swedish chocolates. Alex and Andy pulled out small wooden figurines of Vikings, and little painted horses. Sean also got a little painted horse, and a small wooden carving of a troll.

"Really? A troll? They get Vikings and I get the troll?" Sean looked up at Lee, disappointed.

"I thought it suited you," she said with a playful smile.

Charles opened up his package to find an intricately carved piece of wood in the shape of a hammer. He held it up to study it.

"It's Thor's hammer. God of thunder, protector of mankind. Also fitting," Lee explained. "Oh! And this," Lee went back to her bag, remembering she had another gift. She pulled out a large cream colored bundle. She unfolded the mass to reveal that it was a thick knit sweater, and draped it over his shoulders. "You're not a true Swede without a sweater like this. It seems obsurd now, but you'll be thanking me when it gets cold."

"What's with the horse?" Alex asked before Charles could say anything.

"It's called a _Dalahäst_, or dala horse. They were toys in the olden days, but now they're the typical Swedish souvenir," Lee explained.

The group spent the rest of the evening around the table in the kitchen. Alex, Sean, and Andy told Lee exaggerated stories of what Charles made them do in training. Lee was interested to hear how Andy was doing, as he was the newest resident. He seemed to be enjoying himself, and Lee could tell that he was becoming a sidekick of sorts to Sean.

Sean and Charles finally convinced Lee to tell them about the wedding. She described her giant, loud family, and the chaos of the wedding. She explained a few customs to answer Sean's questions. She finally got to the story of the drunken old women. It wasn't a unique story, as drunken clashes at weddings are universally mandatory, but the boys egged her on, wanting to hear about the family drama. Lee described the scene, imitating Fillipa and her own great Aunt Brigit with an exaggeratedly thick Swedish accent.

"You almost married a guy named Hugo?" Sean asked, saying the name with disgust, interrupting the story.

"It's a common name," Lee defended, though she wasn't sure why. "But it is a bit pretentious," she added, sneaking a peak at Charles. If he was jealous at all at the mention of Lee's ex fiancé, he didn't show it. He had no reason to be. Just in case, Lee repeated that thought, hoping Charles would pick up on it.

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><p>I'm leaving town Monday for several days. But after that I have a full schedule, so I'm not entirely sure when I'll update next. This may very well be the last update for about a week.<p> 


	25. XXIV

So, I'm back! Here's a nice long update to make up for my absence.

A new character is introduced! And finally, another girl! Woohoo!

But just a word of warning, the end is near! I want to wrap this up before it hits 30 chapters. And by 30 I mean the Roman numerals 30. When you see the XXX (which will be 31 according to ), this ought to be over. And I'm still taking ideas for little vignette one shots!

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><p>Not even two days after Lee returned to the mansion, she and Charles were back out on the road, in search for more mutants. While she was gone, Charles had been keeping tabs on near-by mutants in need, planning the best routes and courses of action for when Lee returned.<p>

Charles was delighted that he had found a partner in crime, as it were. He found that people responded quite well to Lee. But really, who wouldn't, as she was a charming, beautiful, and quietly friendly person. She was inviting. Much more so than Erik, Charles thought distantly. But he pushed that thought away. In Lee's absence, Charles made the conscious decision to move forward with his life. He was determined to let go of the past, and focus on the future- the mansion, his fellow mutants, and his relationships with them.

For the first time in what felt like forever to him, Charles was finally feeling optimistic, and although reluctantly, hopeful.

Lee noticed that Charles was smiling much more often, especially when they were about to meet new mutants for the first time. He enjoyed his work, and his happiness was starting to rub off on her.

They were a good team. Charles always approached the mutant first, introducing themselves with a kind smile and explaining their intentions with patience and understanding. He was excellent at making people feel accepted.

Lee's role in their recruitment was to be the closer. Charles got their attention, but Lee reeled them in. She could easily relate to them, and brought home the fact that they were not alone. It wasn't long until Charles had Lee leading their recruiting. She caught on quickly. Charles could tell that she enjoyed it, too.

They were in Providence, Rhode Island in search of another mutant, sitting on a bench outside of the Sciences Library. The mutant they were looking for was inside, studying. Charles was sipping at a cup of tea, with Lee occasionally taking it from his hands and drinking out of it. Charles didn't mind.

They watched the students moving around the campus in silence. It was warm, as it was well into the summer, but it was still early in the morning. Watching the students carrying their books and rushing to class reminded Lee how glad she was that she was done with all that. She enjoyed university, but never had any desire to go through it again, unlike Charles. She didn't have any academic ambitions. Her reason for attending university was mostly to prove that she could. She didn't have much support from her family, and wanted to prove that she, a woman, could successfully graduate from a top university. Nobody but Lee and her parents knew that her graduation was anything by successful. Her GPA had been pathetic, and she barely scraped by. She was academic probation several times, but she pulled herself together in her senior year and graduated on time.

In all honesty, Lee didn't know what she wanted to do with her life. Not until she met Charles. The mansion gave her a feeling of purpose, it gave her a role. Up until that point in her life, she was just going through the motions, looking for a place to fit in, doing what she thought others expected. She sighed quietly and moved her hand to cover and squeeze Charles'. She owed him everything.

Charles perked up as a bony little wisp of a girl walked out of the library, clutching an armful of books to her chest, her head down. She was hunched over, a backpack busting at the seams on her back. She didn't look a day older than nineteen.

Charles discarded his disposable cup of tea, and followed the girl, matching her quick step. Lee trailed behind him. The girl knew they were following her and quickened her pace, which Lee thought to be impossible. She could hardly keep up.

Charles was calling after her, asking for a few moments of her time. He was completely unintimidating, yet the girl continued on. He was frightening her. He slowed his pace, allowing Lee to catch up. They exchanged a quick look once she was by his side. Lee turned from Charles to the girl, who was already so far away. Lee sighed, looked at Charles once more, then took off after the girl. Her ballet flats were silent against the walk way as she ran, and easily caught up to the girl.

Lee noticed with a bit of smug satisfaction that she had startled the girl when she caught up to her.

"I'm so sorry to bother you, but would you mind if asked for just a moment of your time?" Lee asked her, smiling brightly in an effort to look as warm as possible.

"I have to get to class," the girl said meekly. Lee chanced a glance at Charles, who was standing back by the library, hands in his pockets, shaking his head, telling Lee that the girl was lying.

"My name is Lee Bohman," Lee ignored the girl, and stuck out her hand. The girl shifted her books to one arm and awkwardly shook Lee's hand, reluctant to touch her.

"I don't want to join any clubs or sororities," said the girl, trying to get away.

"It's not anything like that. Listen, do you have a few minutes? This is important," Lee pleaded. The girl seemed to consider it for a few moments, then sighed, defeated. Lee surpressed a smile and followed the girl inside one of the buildings.

"He's not coming, is he?" the girl asked, looking over her shoulder and out of the window in the door at Charles, still standing back by the library. Lee realized what Charles must have realized a while ago- that the girl did not respond well to him and it was up to Lee to do the job.

"Not if you don't want him to," said Lee, noticing the girl's subtle relief. "Let's sit down," she led her to a bench in the building's lobby. The girl carefully put her bag down next to the bench, and neatly stacked her books between her and Lee to act as some sort of buffer.

Lee took a moment to collect her thoughts. She thought of all the things she heard Charles say to the other mutants. She could remember phrases and explanations, but not in any coherent order. The familiar feeling of Charles entering her mind calmed Lee. He rarely ever trespassed into her mind, but his presence comforted her. She wasn't alone.

Charles' presence had a calming effect on Lee. It allowed her to gather her thoughts. Though, Lee wasn't entirely sure if the thoughts were authentically hers, or if Charles was responsible. Either way, she didn't care.

Lee opened her mouth to speak, but realized she didn't even know the girl's name.

_Robin Cole. _Lee smiled, mentally thanking Charles.

"Robin," Lee started, noting the look of surprise on Robin's face, "do you know what a mutant is?" Robin eyed Lee warily.

"No," she answered slowly.

"Well, I'm one. And so are you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Have you ever done anything you can't explain?" Lee answered Robin's question with another question, thoroughly frustrating the girl.

"Like what? Like genetic mutations? Look, I don't have time," said Robin. Lee urged Robin to stay, and explained what she could. She didn't fully grasp the concept of mutants like Charles did, but she got the basics down.

"So that's what you call it," mused Robin quietly. Lee smiled.

"And you're not alone. I'm one. So is the guy sitting outside. He's harmless, by the way. He's a telepath, and I can manipulate magnetic fields. There's others like us, too. We all live together in New York, in a school of sorts. We learn how to control and understand our mutations," Lee explained.

"I'm already in school, sorry."

"It's not an academic school, unless that's what you need. Charles, the guy outside, received his professorship in genetics at Oxford, I went to Lund in Sweden, we've got a genius doctor turned scientist turned engineer. There's three other guys, but they're no older than eighteen. What we mostly focus on is developing your control over your mutation." Robin took in Lee's words and considered them.

"So that guy out there knows his stuff. He could tell me what I am, why, all that?" she asked. Lee smiled kindly and nodded. "My summer classes end in two weeks, and the fall semester doesn't start until September 15."

"Perfect."

"Are you the only girl?" Robin asked hesitantly.

"Hopefully not anymore," Lee laughed, causing Robin to smile. Both women looked up at the sound of the door opening to see Charles entering the building. He knew that he was safe to join the pair, and that Lee had been successful.

Charles didn't know why, and he wasn't about to pry, but he got the feeling that Robin was uncomfortable around men. Whatever the reason, he was thankful he had Lee with him. She had proven to be a valuable asset to the team. As much as he enjoyed recruiting, he was always reluctant to leave the mansion. He couldn't help but worry about leaving the others behind by themselves, not since what happened nearly a year previously at Division X. He knew that because of what they were and what they stood for, they had to be careful.

The wheels in Charles' head started to turn with a new idea. He knew that Lee struggled with her role in the mansion, and that he hated to leave everyone alone. He was essentially their leader, the glue, the peace keeper. He would miss her dearly, but there were so many mutants out in the world that needed help. Lee had a way of relating to others. Lee could be an ambassador of sorts for the school. It was just an idea, though.

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><p>Also, Harry fucking Potter and the Deathly fucking Hallows Part fucking 2. I cried so hard. Like sobbing. On the bright side, I have a henna dark mark to remind me of the pain, and to earn odd looks when I go out. Seriously, the waiter at my fav pad thai restaurant stared at it for so long, I had to repeat my order. They just don't understand. (I went dressed as Snape). Got any stories of your premier experiences? Or ideas for vignette oneshots?<p> 


	26. XXV

Soooo I'm leaving town again on Thursday. I'll be getting my cowboy on at a family friend's ranch. Pray that I don't get bitten by a rattlesnake or trampled by a herd of goats (they don't raise cows, oddly enough).

Anyways, this was a really nice chapter to write. It's the longest one yet! Enjoy!

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><p>Lee and Charles left Providence soon after their talk with Robin. She promised to keep in touch with them, and they made plans to escort her to the mansion once her summer classes were over. Lee was excited to have another woman around the house, even if she was so quiet. She was too old to fit in with Alex and Sean, sometimes even Hank. It was hard to remember he was still so young, based off of how mature he acted. Lee secretly hoped that they would be able to find more adult mutants. At the rate they were going, Lee and Charles would be over-run by teenagers.<p>

Lee briefly entertained the idea of children of her own. She had never really wanted any, she wasn't the mothering type. She never had any experience with small children, and felt uncomfortable around them. She liked to think that if it was the right time, or if she found the right person, she would consider having children of her own. However, the idea felt foreign to her. She just couldn't picture herself holding a squirming baby or pushing a toddler on a swing set in a picturesque park somewhere. For an even more brief moment, Lee wondered what Charles would be like as a father. But Lee pushed that thought away. It was far too soon in their relationship to even think about anything like that. It was absurd.

Lee was sitting at her desk by the window, a book open in front of her, though she was too intent looking out the window to pay the book any mind. Charles was out on the lawn with Sean and Alex. They were all wearing matching grey sweat suits. Lee had her own suit, though she hardly liked to wear it. The boys had been running all over the grounds of the mansion.

Sean always complained about the running to Lee, as if she could do anything to help him. He seemed to think that since she was romantically involved with the person making him do the running, that she had some sort of control. Lee knew Sean was more than capable of keeping up, he was just lazy. And she knew that whatever Charles had him doing, it was for his own good. She knew that Charles wasn't the type to make someone do something for no reason, whether the reason were clear or not. He was also the type to perform the task right alongside the students, which was something Lee admired.

When Lee had grown tired of watching the three working out on the grounds, she closed her book and stood from the desk. She pulled the curtains closed and exited the room, heading towards Hank's lab. She enjoyed spending time down there. She wasn't any use to Hank, and he wasn't very talkative, but she liked to think that she kept him company, kept him from feeling lonely. He was naturally a reserved person, and Lee noticed he lacked people skills. She hoped her presence made him feel more comfortable around others. He always put up a bit of a fight every time she entered his lab, but he always gave in and let her stay.

Lee walked into the lab to see Hank bent over a table, furiously writing on a giant sheet of paper at a drafting table. Lee peered over his shoulder to see what looked like some sort of blueprint or plan.

"New project?" she asked, breaking the silence. It took Hank several moments to break his concentration and reply.

"Yeah, I'm working on a new version of Cerebro," he answered with a nod, straightening out his shoulders and stretching a bit.

"What? And get rid of the giant golf ball?" Lee joked, still looking at the plans, trying to make sense of it.

"It's inefficient, and totally conspicuous. I was thinking about building it down in the basement. It would be out of the way," said Hank. Lee nodded in understanding.

"I wish I could help you. You do so much around here. Charles, too. I feel like I don't do enough to help out," she said with a sigh. The most Lee could do to help Hank was sharpen his pencils, which he usually made her do in the hallway, as the noise both distracted and bothered him. Lee was no good at helping train the others, as she was not very athletic, nor did she understand genetic mutations the way Charles did.

"Actually, this is going to take a lot of heavy lifting," said Hank, getting back to work.

"I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I come down here and sit at a stool all day instead of being outside, running around and lifting things with the others. I'd ask Alex or Andy if I were you. They're sporty," Lee laughed.

"There's no way they'd be able to pick up the materials. I was talking about using your mutation," Hank corrected her. Lee was about to question him further, but realized he had gone back to his plans and wasn't paying any more attention to her. Lee sighed, looking around the room for something to do. She picked up the waste basket and cleared all of the tables of discarded candy wrappers. As brilliant as he was, Hank wasn't very neat or organized. He hated it when she tried to organize his things, but let her clean up his messes.

Lee turned her gaze towards the door as she heard feet pounding down the hallway outside of the lab. Even through the thick wooden door, she could hear Sean and Andy talking loudly. The door opened and Charles walked into the lab. Alex, Sean, and Andy were standing behind him in the doorway, gazing around the lab curiously. They were all drenched in sweat, and Lee could practically smell them across the lab.

"There you are!" said Charles happily, striding across the room to Lee. He was smiling broadly and clapped a hand on Lee's shoulder, startling her. He was in a good mood, and Lee couldn't help but smile.

"What's going on?" Lee asked, looking from Charles to the three expectant looking boys in the doorway.

"You still have those sweats I gave you, yeah? We'd like you to join us outside," he said, his smile never leaving, even though Lee's face fell. Sean laughed loudly at her expression, and Hank let out an amused snort, having abandoned his work to watch.

"Why?" was all Lee could think to ask. She hated the mischievous twinkle in Charles' eyes. He was plotting something.

"You'll see. Run upstairs and change, and meet us out front when you're ready," he said, planting a quick kiss on her forehead and turning to leave. Sean and Andy made obnoxious kissing noises, but quieted themselves after receiving a warning look from Charles. Hank chuckled and went back to his work. Lee swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat, and left the lab to change into the grey sweats she never thought she would have to wear. She reluctantly left her room to meet the boys on the lawn. She opened the front door to see the group waiting around. Sean was sitting on the ground, pulling out clumps of grass with his fists. Andy was sitting next to him, though he was being less destructive. Alex was arguing with Charles, who was standing next to a large box.

"You're not going to make me run, are you?" said Lee, getting everyone's attention. Charles turned around to face her and grinned.

"If we're running again, I'm leaving," Sean groaned. Charles ignored him.

"No, you're safe this time. It would seem that we require your abilities," said Charles, that same twinkle and grin still present. Lee eyed him and the box warily, but followed the group past the wooden fence and into the large, open field. Charles dropped the box, causing the contents to emit a loud, metallic clatter. Lee looked from the box to Charles, and back again.

"I still think this is a bad idea. I'll probably kill her," grumbled Alex, alarming Lee.

"What exactly are we doing?" she asked worriedly.

"Target practice," he answered simply. He grabbed Lee's shoulders and directed her to stand next to the box. He then directed Alex to go stand in a spot many yards away. As Alex was walking, Charles explained his plan to Lee. He knelt down to open the box to reveal all sorts of metal objects- silverware, bits of scrap metal left over from Hanks projects, old pots and pans. "You're going to propel these into the air, and Alex is going to hit them. Simple enough, don't you think?" he looked up at Lee, smirking. She shrugged.

"Couldn't Andy do this? Do I really have to be here?" Lee asked, still eyeing the box hesitantly.

"He could, yes. However, I will be working with him on something else."

"Wait, you're leaving us?" she cried. She wasn't sure she was qualified to be responsible for training the younger mutant.

"You'll do wonderfully. Just propel the objects away from yourself and the house, so we don't accidentally destroy anything. Don't want any accidents," he said with a wink.

"What about Sean?" Lee asked, noticing how entertained he was by the situation. He shot a playful glare her way at her attempt to get him involved.

"He's free to go," Charles answered, turning to the boy with a smile. Sean pumped his fist in the air.

"Yes! Thank god," Sean cried, fleeing the scene before someone could change their mind.

"Well, let's get to work! Andy, come with me," Charles clapped his hands together excitedly. "Alex! Don't destroy anything! And don't kill Lee!" he shouted to Alex, adding "I'm quite fond of her." Lee blushed a bit as he gave her a quick peck on the lips before walking away with Andy in tow.

Lee sighed again, looking down warily at the box. She kicked it over, causing the contents to spill out on the grass. A shiny, crumpled sheet of metal floated into the air, hovering in front of Lee as she waited for Alex to ready himself. At his mark, the scrap metal shot up into the air, and a red beam of energy blasted it out of the sky. Lee gave Alex a few minutes to recover before an old, crusty sauce pan shot into the air, meeting the same fate as the scrap. Alex only missed a few of his targets, and by the end of it, he was lying spread-eagle in the grass, gasping for breath, with Lee sitting cross-legged next to him.

"You did great," she complimented, a bit out of breath herself. She wasn't used to exerting her power so much, and had actually broken a significant sweat. It seemed as though Charles had an ulterior motive in getting her involved.

"Thanks," he gasped, an arm over his eyes, blocking out the summer sun. Lee looked out over the field, spotting bits of smoldering metal and singed grass. Luckily, nothing apart from the targets and a few patches of grass had been damaged.

Lee gave Alex a few moments to rest before collecting the empty box and heading inside for a cold Coke. They found Sean eating at the table. Lee wondered how they managed to keep food in the house, with three teenage boys and Hank's monstrous appetite.

"You're both in one piece!" he hollered through a mouth full of chips. He swallowed and flashed a toothy grin at the pair. Alex shot him a withering glare and turned to the refrigerator. Lee was already standing in front of it, soaking in the cool air. She passed him a bottle, popping the cap off for him. They joined Sean at the table, Lee grabbing a handful of his chips.

They sat in silence, eating and drinking, until Andy dragged himself into the room and fell into the empty chair next to Sean, dropping his head to the table's surface.

"That guy is a slave driver," moaned Andy without lifting his head. Sean and Alex nodded their heads in solemn agreement, too exhausted to verbally respond. Lee rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway.

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><p>By the way, thanks so much to everyone who reviews! You guys are awesome and you make me want to write! It's like a nice little kick in the pants to do something productive every time someone leaves a review.<p>

P.S. I'm still taking suggestions and ideas for vignette oneshots based off of this story! If there's any scene (within reason) with Charles, Lee, or the rest of the gang that you're dying to read about, let me know!


	27. XXVI

Another long one! I ought to have at least one more done before I leave.

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><p>Charles kept coming up with different exercises for the boys for Lee to help him with. She helped Alex with his target practice, each session getting more advanced. Lee also noticed that with each session, the objects Charles came up with were getting progressively larger and heavier. It didn't take her long to figure out that he was trying to kill two birds with one stone; Alex was getting more accurate, and Lee was strengthening her power.<p>

After Alex, Charles had Lee help Andy. He had them playing a sort of mental tug-of-war. Lee started out with control over various metal objects, and Andy had to fight her for that control. When she truly focused, Andy would make himself red in the face, bent over and breathing heavily trying to win, but she was much stronger than he was, especially after all of her recent exercises.

Lee was glad that Charles had yet to come up with a way for her to train with Sean. His mutation gave her a headache.

On top of all of her training sessions, Hank was finalizing his plans for the latest version of Cerebro. Without much of her consent, Hank had enlisted her help to build the machine.

Lee was sitting on a stool in Hank's lab, trying to pay attention to him explaining the science behind it all, when it clicked. Charles was preparing her for helping Hank. She remembered Hank mentioning that his materials would be heavy, and Charles was having her fling around heavy hunks of metal all over the grounds. She was both angry that she had been tricked, and impressed for the very same reason.

"So I take it you've been planning this with Charles?" Lee interrupted Hank's ramble. He looked up from his many papers, and pushed his glasses further up on the bridge of his nose with one furry blue finger.

"Huh?"

"Never mind," Lee laughed. She was happy to help him, but wished that the two would just confront her directly.

"This is boring, I'm sorry. You can go if you want. Last I heard, Charles was in his study with Andy. I bet they would both like a break," he offered. Lee stood from her stool, gave him a quick hug and promised she would talk to him later about Cerebro. She left the room quickly. Because of all the extra training sessions, she had been spending little time with Charles.

She knocked lightly on the study door and waited for a response. It took a moment, but Andy opened the door for her. Charles was sitting in one of the armchairs, and Lee guessed that Andy had been sitting across from him. They both looked frustrated and tired.

"I'm not interrupting, am I?" she asked.

"No, we were just finishing up. Go get some rest, Andy. You did well today," Charles dismissed the boy, and stood to greet Lee with a kiss. Once Andy was gone and the door was shut tightly, Charles slumped back into his chair.

"You've been working pretty hard," Lee stated, taking in his tired features and hunched shoulders. He was usually energetic and had excellent posture. The training was taking a toll on him.

"I haven't worked this hard in almost a year. Not since last October," he said, rubbing his eyes tiredly. Lee realized that he hadn't been very active due to his injury. He had been immobile for months, and was only just easing back into a normal lifestyle when she first met him. He was pushing himself too hard, in her opinion.

Lee squeezed herself into his chair, settling herself between the armrest and Charles' hip. It was uncomfortable, but Charles laughed anyway. He wrapped his arms around her, and shifted her position, draping her legs over his lap and the opposite armrest of the one her back was against.

"So, I hear Hank's working on a new Cerebro," she prodded once she was settled.

"I see you've figured me out," Charles laughed, trying not to look guilty.

"I would have gladly helped him, but I would have resisted training if I knew it was for myself. Good for you for figuring out how to trick me into it," said Lee.

"I knew you would be more than willing to help the others. I also knew that you would forgive me, because I knew you'd figure me out eventually," he confessed.

"Well, you tricked me for almost a week and a half. That's quite the feat," joked Lee.

"Do I get some sort of prize? Perhaps a medal?" said Charles, going along with it.

"Something like that," she said, placing her hands behind his, pulling him closer. Charles adjusted himself and reposition his hands so that one was on her hip and on was at her back, pulling her to him to deepen the kiss. Lee caught his bottom lip between her own and pulled away playfully. Charles wasn't in the teasing mood, as he this was his first encounter with Lee in what felt like ages. He pulled her back to him, taking charge of the situation. As he kissed her, the hand that was on her hip slid to the base of her spine, then upwards, making its way under her blouse. Lee's hands were tangled in his hair, one sliding down to the base of his neck, past the collar of his shirt, finally resting on his collar bone and pulling at his formerly pressed oxford shirt.

It wasn't long until Charles had both of his hands in her blouse, and she was fumbling to unbutton his shirt. Charles surprised Lee, and interrupted her battle with the buttons, by shifting their positions again. Rather than having her legs curled up, with her knees in Charles' stomach, he guided her into a straddling position, only breaking their heated kiss for a brief moment. Lee had her hands on his newly bare chest when he pulled away. He pulled his hands away from her quickly and starting to hastily button his own shirt.

"Sean," he whispered quickly, prompting Lee to jump away from the chair and adjust her own clothing and hair. However, both their lips were a bit swollen, and their faces were flushed. It was obvious what they had been doing, but at least Sean wouldn't actually walk in on them in the act. Not a second later, there was a knock at the door.

"I know Lee is in there, so I'll give you a sec to collect yourselves," said Sean form the other side of the door. Charles and Lee exchanged a look and smiled at each other as he stood form his armchair. He moved to Lee and ran his hand through her hair. She liked the feel of it, but realized the gesture was meant to un-tousle it. She returned the favor, and he opened the door to let Sean into the study.

"Sorry to interrupt the love fest, but you got mail," Sean handed Lee a large envelope, "and that girl Robin just called," he said to Charles. Sean looked at Lee, then Charles, and back again, with a smirk. Lee shot him a withering stare and walked past him and out of the room to allow Charles to call Robin back. Lee went up to her room and tore open the envelope. It was from her mother, and had gotten a little beaten up from the long journey from Sweden to New York. She dumped the contents onto her bed. There were several photographs from the wedding and a short note from her mother.

_Amelie,_

_We were so happy that you were able to come home for Cajsa's wedding! It's a shame you were here for such a short time, and I insist that you come home and visit your parents again very soon! Whenever you can get enough time off work, we'd be happy to have you! Perhaps you could bring that professor? _

_I thought you would like to know that Hugo has announced his engagement to some plain looking girl he met at church. She's not nearly as pretty as you. She's got a crooked front tooth and awful skin!_

_When you come home again, we can talk about how terribly rude you were to Fillipa (even though she deserved it). You need to learn that ladies do not have arguments in a public forum, no matter how horribly rude the shrew is being to you. _

_I've enclosed a few photographs from the wedding. You looked lovely, though I dare say you'd look much better in white. Hopefully your poor mother will see her only daughter married before she dies?_

_Love, _

_Mama_

Lee rolled her eyes at her mother's note. She was loving, and had good intentions, but usually came off as a nag. Lee tossed the handwritten note aside and took up the photographs. There was one of the entire wedding party, one with just the bride and bridesmaids, one of Lee and her parents, and a candid that Lee wasn't aware had been taken of her. She was standing in the garden outside of the tent during the reception, looking at something to the left of the camera. She wasn't sure how she didn't notice the picture being taken. It would have been a lovely photograph of her, had she not been wearing that horrible bridesmaids outfit. Luckily, it was in black and white, so nobody would ever be able to discern what color that awful dress was.

Lee tossed the pictures next to the letter and leaned back against her pillows, her head rolling back. She shut her eyes and took in a deep breath. She was tired.

A hand on her knee and the bed shifting under the added weight of a new person startled Lee. She had fallen into a light sleep. She rubbed at her eyes and looked to the foot of her bed to see Charles smiling at her.

"Sorry to wake you," he apologized.

"I can't believe I fell asleep. What time is it?" she sat forward and peered at the clock on the bedside table. She had only been asleep for fifteen minutes. She sighed in relief.

"Robin will be here in a few days. She's taking a bus. I'd like you to meet her at the station. She's comfortable with you," he said.

"I'd be happy to," she agreed. Charles only nodded in response, having noticed the torn envelope and pile of papers sitting next to her on the bed.

"Letter from home?" he asked. Lee nodded, pushing the pile towards him. He wasn't able to read the letter, as it was in Swedish. He dropped the note to the bed and thumbed through the photographs.

"How large is your family?" he asked incredulously, holding up the one of the entire wedding party.

"Those are all of my cousins, plus a few of the groom's family members. I don't even want to try and count all of them," she said with a laugh. Charles continued through the stack.

"This is a lovely photograph of you," he said, holding up the candid shot. Lee shrugged and rolled her eyes. She agreed, but didn't want him to know that. Of course, he was telepathic and already did. He chuckled lightly and set the photographs down. "So, Sean has terrible timing," he said after a moment of silence, causing Lee to laugh.

"We should make him wear bells," she said, contributing to the joke. Lee moved her body to the other side of the bed, giving Charles room to join her at the top of it. He leaned back against the pillows and put an arm around Lee's shoulders, drawing her to his chest. He placed both arms around her, and she rested her head in the center of his chest.

It wasn't long until Lee fell asleep again, with Charles following only moments later.

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><p>Hot dog, Charles gets some action! And Lee's mother still manages to nag her even though she's almost 4,000 miles away!<p> 


	28. XXVII

What the hellllllll why is this so long? This was 6 fucking pages. Enjoy this, as it will be the last update in a while. I shall return sometime next week with another update.

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><p>Lee had arrived early at the bust station to pick up Robin. She had borrowed one of the cars in the garage at the mansion, and hoped it wouldn't get damaged in the parking lot as she waited inside the building for the bus from Providence to pull in.<p>

When the bus finally pulled to a stop in front of the building, Lee walked through the front doors and waited for Robin to get off. She greeted the shy girl with a kind smile and warm hand shake.

"Glad to see you've made it! We're so excited to have you at the mansion," said Lee, taking Robin's duffel bag from her and leading her towards the car. To her delight, the shiny black luxury car was spotless.

The drive back to the mansion was silent, save for Lee's few attempts to start a conversation. Robin really wasn't very talkative. Lee pulled the car into the garage, where Charles was waiting, leaning against another car with his hands in his pockets. Robin eyed him warily.

Charles opened the door for Lee and took Robin's bag, leading them into the mansion. Robin's gaze wandered all over, taking in the lavish setting.

"Let's take you up to your room," he said with a charming smile. He bounded up the stairs, clearly excited about having new blood in the mansion. Lee found his good mood to be infectious. She encouraged Robin to follow him with a grin, and followed the reluctant girl up the stairs. The two girls followed Charles into an empty bedroom located in the same wing as the others. Unlike Lee's move-in, they were prepared with a clean room. Charles still wasn't emotionally ready to clear out Raven's old room, and refused to let anyone else do it. As a result, Robin's room was between Hank's room and an empty bedroom.

It worried Lee a little that Charles still wasn't completely over Raven, but she understood why. They had been together since they were small children, they were brother and sister. Lee knew that it would take Charles a while to let go and move on, though she hoped he would get over it soon. She hated to see him hurt over someone so vain and selfish.

"Dinner will be soon. We can give you a tour until then, unless you'd like to rest," Charles offered, hoping Robin would agree. He wanted to draw the girl out of her shell.

"No, I'm a bit tired. I ate on the bus, so if it's alright, I'll just go to bed early. I've been up since four," Robin spoke softly, looking around at the room. Charles glanced at Lee, then back to Robin.

"Alright then. We'll see you in the morning. You're welcome to sleep in as long as you'd like, but we're usually up around eight. Or at least Hank and I are. You can meet everyone in the morning," said Charles, a little disheartened. Robin nodded, and waited for Lee and Charles to leave.

"She's just shy," said Lee as soon as the pair were in the hallway, Robin's bedroom shut tightly, trying to excuse the girl's behavior. Charles ran a hand through his hair and sighed. His hair was getting a bit long, almost shaggy, and he needed to shave.

"Do I look that bad?" he asked with a humorless laugh.

"No, you look rugged. Not at all unattractive," Lee laughed, amused that he misread her thoughts. Charles allowed himself to smile and grabbed her hand to lead her to the kitchen. She held her ground as he tried to walk off, and pulled him back to her by his arm. She placed a hand on the side of his head, her thumb just in front of his ear, her fingers in his hair. Charles' free hand found its way to her waist.

"I have a favor to ask you," said Charles, his voice almost a whisper. Lee smiled.

"And what would that be?" she asked, prompting him to continue.

"There's a mutant in New York City. I want you to try and find the girl. She requires our immediate attention, but I'd really like to spend time with Robin. Would you mind going into the city tomorrow?" he asked hopefully, laying out all the facts so that she could make an educated decision. Charles didn't want to pressure her into the role, but hoped that she would seriously consider it. He had a feeling that she would be good at that sort of thing.

"Of course," she answered almost immediately. She was wonderfully loyal to Charles, and he was exceedingly grateful for it. Lee was making his life easier, more than she could know.

She leant forward and kissed him quickly, then pulled on his hand, dragging him downstairs to help the others with dinner.

Lee left the mansion early the next morning in an effort to beat the morning traffic into the city. Charles woke early to have a quick breakfast with her and to see her off. He gave her a few last minute instructions, wished her luck, and gave her a parting kiss. Lee promised to call if she had any trouble, and Charles promised that he would check in on her every few hours. The idea comforted her. As invasive as his telepathy could be, it comforted Lee to know that Charles was with her, even though they would be miles apart.

Lee parked the car on the side of the road somewhere in Brooklyn. She put a handful of quarters into the meter, buying herself the maximum amount of time. She had three hours before she had to return and feed the machine more money. She hoped she would find the mutant girl by then. Charles had given her an address, giving Lee a place to start.

Lee walked down the empty sidewalk, her nose in a map. She had to stop every once in a while to check the street signs, but eventually found herself on the correct street corner. The apartment complex was right across the street from where Lee stood. It was an old red brick building with black iron bars on the first floor windows. Lee wasn't sure if it was a decorative statement or a means of security.

Lee walked up the front steps and went to open the front door to find it locked. Only residents had keys, but Lee hadn't needed a key for anything in years. The lock clicked open and the door swung open on its own, allowing Lee to walk into the foyer. She was met by a overgrown potted fern and a menacing set of stairs. The building as about six stories high, and Lee had been informed by Charles that the girl lived on the fourth floor. As she ascended the stairs, Lee hoped that the girl was home.

Before she left that morning, Charles had told her what to expect. Unlike Robin, he had more information on the mutant Lee was searching for. She was thirteen years old and lived with her eldest sister. As far as Charles could tell, she was the only mutant in the family, and the girl kept her quality a secret. Her name was Savannah, and she lived in flat 4E. As far as Charles could tell, her mutation was quite simple, though it had gotten her into loads of trouble. The young girl possessed extreme physical strength, and a slight healing factor.

Due to her training, Lee wasn't as winded as she normally would have been once she reached the fourth floor. She followed the sign pointing her to the correct wing of the building, housing flats 4A through 4F. Lee walked down the hall until she reached 4E. She took a deep breath and knocked loudly on the door.

Not seconds later, the door was thrown open, revealing a short little girl, dressed in a pink pajama set with a bit of juice splashed down the front of her top. The girl was short, but was unmistakably the thirteen year old that Lee was in search of.

"Hello," said Lee, a bright smile on her face. "Sorry if I'm interrupting your morning, but my name is Lee Bohman, and I'd like to have a word with you." The girl, Savannah, eyed her suspiciously.

"What for?" she asked, scowling up at Lee. She was wary of the strange adult standing in her doorway.

"You're Savannah, aren't you?" Lee asked, ignoring the girl's question.

"Who wants to know?" Savannah crossed her arms over her chest, hiding the juice stain from view. She had an attitude.

"Would it be alright if we talked somewhere a bit more private? I have a very important thing to speak to you about. It concerns your special abilities," asked Lee, hoping to sound both kind and trustworthy.

"What abilities? What have you heard?" she asked defensively. Before Lee could answer, the girl threw the door shut. Before it slammed completely shut, though, Lee caught the metal of the knob with her power and held it open a crack. The girl gasped and threw herself at the door to shut it completely. Lee struggled to keep hold of the door knob against the girl's strength, but was eventually able to slowly push it open, forcing the girl back.

"How did you do that?" cried Savannah, realizing that Lee never even touched the door. Taking a calming breath after her exertion, Lee stepped forward into the flat, uninvited.

"I'm like you. We're called mutants. We both have very special abilities that other people do not. You realize that you're not like all the other children, don't you? You're quite spectacular," said Lee. Savannah looked up at Lee, taking in her words with mild interest. She had been called a lot of things- freak, weird, loser, but never special or spectacular.

"What do you mean?" Savannah asked, moving further into the flat, signaling to Lee that she was no longer unwelcome. However, she stayed close to the door, not wanting to push Savannah's trust.

"You are very strong. Abnormally strong. Not that it's bad! No, not at all. It's quite amazing," Lee had to choose her words carefully so as not to offend the sensitive girl. "You see, we're called mutants not because we're different or freaks of nature, but because our genes, our DNA, are ever so slightly different from other normal people's. It's completely natural, and much more common than you may realize."

"So there's others?" Savannah asked, taking a seat at a table set with a half eaten bowl of cereal and an almost empty glass of apple juice. Lee glanced around the flat. It was small. The kitchen could hardly be called that. It was combined with the living room. There was a single window on the wall with a tattered couch pushed up against it. There were two doors in the room. One was slightly open, revealing a bathroom. Lee assumed the other door lead to a bedroom.

"Oh yes, there are tons of us. In fact, I live in a house with six others. But of course, there are loads more," Lee explained, snapping her attention from the cramped living space to the thirteen year old sitting at the table, shoveling soggy cereal into her mouth while watching Lee expectantly.

"So why are you here?" she asked between bites.

"Is there anyone else home? I have an offer for you, but it requires your guardians consent," Lee didn't want to get Savannah's hopes up of going to the mansion if her sister was just going to refuse. But she hoped that wouldn't be the case. Savannah's attitude had changed drastically once she realized that Lee was like herself, and Lee knew that the child belonged with her own kind, with people that would understand her. Lee got the feeling that Savannah was a loner and lacked a person in her life that really, genuinely understood her.

"My sister's at work. She gets home around three," said Savannah just before bringing the cereal bowl to her lips and drinking the leftover milk. She smacked her lips once she was done with the milk, then gulped down the remainder of her apple juice. She stood from the table and placed the dishes on top of a pile in the sink.

"Well, I can come back when she's home. Would that be alright?"

"What do you want to talk to her about?" Savannah asked as she put the cereal box away in a cabinet.

"Well, I'm here on behalf of a very special school. It's for people like us. We teach mutants how to control and use their powers, give them a safe place to live, and be with others like themselves," Lee explained.

"What's it called?" Savannah asked curiously. Lee's eyes widened. She didn't know the answer to that. There really wasn't a name for the mansion. Everyone always just called it 'the mansion.'

"Xavier's," Lee sputtered. She threw the name out in desperation, not sure how else to answer the girls' question. It would sound stupid if she said they didn't have a name, and she couldn't tell the girl 'X-Men', either. That was just a joke between Sean and Alex.

"'Xavier's' what?" Savannah asked skeptically.

"School. Xavier's School for… gifted… for gifted youngsters," Lee stammered. Savannah eyed her warily, but accepted her answer. Lee could have smacked herself. The name was stupid, but she couldn't go back on it.

"You can tell me about it, if you want. I was gonna go to the library today, but Christine doesn't like me leaving the apartment by myself. If you come with me, she can't get mad. Will you wait while I get dressed?" Savannah asked.

"Oh, sure," Lee agreed. She didn't want to risk losing her opportunity to gain Savannah's interest by leaving her for the entire day, giving her a chance to rethink the situation.

Savannah dashed into the bedroom, hastily changed out of her dirty pajamas and into jean shorts, t-shirt, and trainers. She ran a brush through her hair and tied it back. Savannah left the single bedroom that she shared with her sister, walked past Lee to the door.

Lee followed Savannah out of the building, down the street, and to the library. It was cool and quiet inside the building, a welcome reprise from the summer heat. Lee spent the rest of the morning explained what she knew about mutants, and what the mansion was like to Savannah. Around noon, Lee bought them both sandwiches and Cokes at a deli on the corner, and returned to the library after lunch. Savannah pointed out all of her favorite books, and the ones that she hated. Savannah asked Lee questions about where she was from, asked her to say different phrases in Swedish to hear what the language sounded like, and talked about general topics until the time Savannah's sister was to be home neared.

Lee had forgotten to call Charles, and she hadn't really felt him inside her head. Though, she couldn't always tell when he was reading her thoughts. She amended that she would call him after she spoke to Savannah's sister, who she learned was named Christine. She worked as a nurse.

Lee and Savannah were sitting on the couch back in her flat, leafing through one of Christine's fashion magazines, making fun of the absurd things it said, when Christine walked into the flat.

"Who are you?" she demanded as soon as she noticed Lee. Christine was dressed in pale blue scrubs, and was carrying a large shoulder bag. She looked exhausted.

"My name is Lee Bohman-"

"She's from a school in Westchester! They want to offer me a spot! It's for special kids, like me!" cried Savannah excitedly as she leapt from the couch.

"Special?" Christine asked warily.

"Mutants! I'm a mutant! My DNA is different than yours and normal people's. That's why I'm so strong! And I heal faster than normal kids. Lee is one, too. Everyone at the school is. It's called Xavier's School, and they teach kids how to control their powers!" explained Savannah excitedly.

Christine was hard to persuade, but Lee stayed strong and held to her conviction. She remained adamant that the right place for Savannah was the school. It took nearly an hour for Lee to get Christine to agree. She had to explain her own credentials, as well as the other's, to prove that Savannah would be educated in not only her mutation. The fact that they were offering what Christine called a "full ride" helped persuade her.

Ten o'clock that night, Lee was driving back to the mansion with Savannah asleep in the front seat, the girls' bags taking up the trunk and backseat.

After guiding a sleepy Savannah into an empty bedroom, where she immediately fell back asleep, Lee was greeted by a more than please Charles.

Without saying a word, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her deeply. He was incredibly happy, and proud. He had been right about Lee's potential, and couldn't contain his joy.

Lee pulled away from him for a quick breath and asked, "I take it you're pleased?"

"Very much so," he replied, kissing her again. Wanting to get out of the hallway, Lee broke away, and led him into her bedroom.

* * *

><p>So, yay, more mutants! And now we know where the name of the school came from.<p>

Wah, this is almost over! Sad face :(

Oh, and feel free to make assumptions about the end, there. It's a bit suggestive, eh?


	29. XXVIII

I'm back! Luckily, I did not get bitten by a rattlesnake, or have any run-ins with rogue goats. Though I was threatened by an angry llama and fell of the back of some sort of intense, off-roading golf cart. Don't worry, I walked away with nothing more than a bruised ego and a sore tail-bone. And a wicked face sunburn.

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><p>Lee woke up much too early the next morning. The sun had yet to come up, and she desperately wanted to go back to sleep. Lee screwed her eyes shut and stretched her limbs out. Lee startled herself when her foot kicked something. Lee ran her foot along whatever she had kicked to figure out what it was. It didn't take long to realize that it was a leg. Lee rolled over to make out Charles' bare back in the darkness. Lee pulled the covers up to her chin and smiled to herself. Charles Xavier was in her bed. Lee sighed happily, and did her best to go back to sleep.<p>

Savannah took to life in the mansion quickly. She was a smart, outgoing girl. She took pleasure in taunting Sean, because he could do nothing to retaliate without getting in trouble. It looked bad if a seventeen year old boy was picking on a thirteen year old girl. But if Savannah was the one doing the taunting, it was cute. Sean hated the double standard, but he eventually bonded with her. Every once in a while, they would team up and harass Alex, who would only ever respond with a glare, or would simply walk away. He was getting better at his anger management.

Robin was quiet, and mostly spent time in her room or one of the libraries. Charles was occasionally successful in coaxing her out of her room for several training sessions. Though, her sessions were much less physical than what Charles had Alex, Sean, and Andy doing. Lee witnessed one of their meetings through the kitchen window. They were in the garden, just talking. It took Lee a minute to realize that the plants in the immediate area were growing. It was slow, but they were definitely growing. Buds sprouted and bloomed into large flowers. Robin had some sort of control over plant life, which explained her intended major of botany.

Lee left the window and sat down at the table with a glass of water and a magazine. She leafed through the pages, only looking at the pictures, paying the useless articles no mind, until Charles and Robin came in from the garden. Lee lifted her gaze from the magazine to the pair and smiled.

"How'd it go?" Lee asked, directing her question to Robin. She shrugged in response, and poured herself a glass of water.

"I think it went quite well! Robin's mutation is extraordinary, though I'm well aware that you already knew that," exclaimed Charles, letting Lee know that he knew that she had been watching them. Ever since their night spent together, Lee was glad to see that nothing had changed between them. She originally worried that Charles would treat her differently, or would act differently than normal. Luckily, the only way Charles had changed was that he was in a better mood than usual.

"Good. Hey, Robin, why don't you have a seat," Lee offered, gesturing towards the empty chair across from her. Lee was determined to get Robin out of her shell.

"I'll leave you two alone. I need to check on the boys," Charles dismissed himself from the room, winking quickly at Lee as he left. He hoped desperately that Lee would be able to get Robin to open up.

Robin sat down hesitantly. She sat on the edge of the seat, as if she was expecting to leave very soon. She clutched the glass as if her life depended on it, causing her knuckles to turn white. Lee wondered how the poor girl ever got through university if she dreaded being around people so much.

"So, how do you like it here?" Lee asked in a weak attempt at starting a conversation. She wasn't sure what else to say.

"It's good," Robin shrugged again. Lee notice how Robin only ever looked down at the table, or at a spot just past Lee's head, so as to avoid eye contact.

"So you're studying botany. That's very… interesting. What interests you about it?" Lee asked, hoping that changing the topic to something she perceived Robin to be passionate about would spice up the conversation.

"Isn't it obvious?" Robin scoffed.

"I suppose it is…" Lee frowned a little, trying to come up with something else she could talk about with the girl.

"Can I go? I'd like to finish my book," Robin asked, looking from her glass of water to the door.

"Would you like to see the lab?" Lee blurted. She was desperate to keep Robin out of her room.

"The what?"

"The lab. Hank's lab. The blue guy?" Lee explained, though very poorly. Robin had only met Hank once, and Lee got the impression that his appearance frightened her a bit, but Lee knew she would be interested in seeing the lab.

"You guys have a lab here?" Robin asked, interestedly. Lee smiled and stood from her seat. Robin hesitantly followed her through the mansion and to the thick wooden doors leading to Hank's disorganized lab. It had been a while since Lee had time to visit, or clean up, and she dreaded seeing the state that it was in. She had been much too busy helping Charles with the other children to clear the room of Hank's discarded candy wrappers. But, to her surprise, the lab wasn't in as sorry a state as she anticipated.

Robin looked around the room interestedly, gazing intently at objects, but never touching. Lee walked up to Hank's drafting table, where he was intently staring down at the plans for the new Cerebro. His focus was so intense, he hadn't even noticed his visitors.

"Ah, taking a break I see," Lee joked, setting a hand on Hank's shoulder, interrupting his focus.

"What's up?" he mumbled, not even looking up.

"I've brought a visitor," said Lee, causing Hank to lift his gaze from the table long enough to spot Robin across the room, peering down at a series of graduated cylinders filled with who knows what.

"I'm trying to get these plans finished. I want to start working on this in the next few days. Are you going to be around?" asked Hank, not even phased by the newcomer.

"Yes, why wouldn't I be?"

"Charles is sending you out a lot, I just want to make sure that my work horse won't be a hundred miles away recruiting teenagers," Hank shrugged. Lee rolled her eyes. She should have known that Hank was too fixated on his project to care about the mutants in the mansion. He had a one-track mind.

"If I'm going to help, why don't you show Robin around the lab? She's a botany major at Brown. Maybe you can show her a few things," Lee suggested in a low voice, hoping Robin wouldn't hear.

"Like what?" Hank huffed.

"Be nice to her. She's shy, and I think you might be able to crack that shell. You have a common interest here," explained Lee, still whispering, as she grabbed the pen form Hank's hand, forcing him to fully pay attention to her.

"Fine. But not right now. Bring her back later. Sometime next week would be good," he said, making a grab for the pen. Lee reacted quickly enough so that Hank failed at retrieving the pen.

"You be nice," Lee warned, still firmly holding Hank's pen out of his reach.

"Fine. By the way, that's for you," Hank grumbled, then pointed to a box on a work table. Lee looked from the box to Hank, then back. She walked up to the table, and lifted the lid off of the box. Inside was a crumpled heap of navy fabric. Lee pulled it out of the box and shook it out, revealing a navy body suit with yellow embellishments. The fabric was thick and tough. Remaining in the box were sleek gloves and shiny black boots.

"What's this?" Lee asked, running her hands over the fabric. Robin had taken notice, and was watching the scene from across the lab. Lee knew the answer to her question; she had seen similar suits belonging to Alex, Sean, and Charles.

"If you're going to be an X-Man, you need to have one of those. It should fit, but I doubt you'll need it. I figured you've been here long enough, you're one of us now," explained Hank. Lee couldn't help but smile at the gesture.

* * *

><p>Oh, that's nice of him. He's accepted her as one of them.<p>

Also, the end is like, really close.


	30. XXIX

Second update tonight!

* * *

><p>Lee was happy to see that Robin was slowly replacing her in Hank's lab. Lee had less and less time to spend cleaning up after him, and was relieved to know that someone was cleaning up after and spending time with the recluse. Lee was spending more and more time helping Charles with the other mutants. They had their hands full with six students. Alex and Sean were stepping up into leadership roles every time that Charles or Lee weren't around.<p>

Lee spent more of her time underground with Andy and Hank as soon as the plans for the latest version of Cerebro were completed. Andy's telekinesis wasn't very strong, but Charles insisted that he help anyway, hoping the activity would help strengthen his ability. Like always, Lee thought, he had been right. Every day that Lee and Andy spent helping Hank, Lee noticed that Andy's strength and stamina was increasing.

Lee had to take a break from the construction of the new Cerebro, though, for more traveling. She and Charles were scheduled to visit a young mutant in Boston.

The boy was the youngest yet, at the age of ten. The child's age proved to be problematic, however. His parents refused to release him to the school, despite Charles and Lee's best argument. The returned to the train station empty-handed and spent the train rides home in silence, the weight of failure weighing heavily on their minds. Charles was reminded again that he could not help every mutant, try as he might.

Charles was reminded that mutants were still treated with mistrust, ignorance, and a touch of hostility. They were misunderstood in the worst way, because of the actions of a small group, which the general public took to represent the whole of mutants. He had to remember that he was fighting an uphill battle. Charles had almost forgotten the troubles of mutant kind, due to his blissful existence in the secluded mansion. He had been living happily, without a care, for months. It was about time he was brought back to reality. He needed to be reminded that life isn't always fair, and that you have to fight for what you want. Even then, you might not get it.

Coming off of their failure, Charles and Lee threw themselves back into their roles in the mansion. Charles spent the rest of the summer days with the students, helping them hone their abilities. He spent his evenings working on some sort of format for the academic side of the school- something he had put on the backburner for far too long. Any spare moments he had during the day, he spent in the old version of Cerebro, as Hank was still working on the latest, looking for more mutants in need. He only ever saw Lee in passing, at meals, or when they were surrounded by the children.

Sometimes, if they weren't too exhausted, they would stay up late and spend a few hours talking in one of their bedrooms. The talking sometimes led to something more physical, but it was a rare occurrence. Most of their energy was spent during the day, leaving very little for each other at the end of it.

Charles was always mentally exhausted, while Lee was always physically tired. She spent the bulk of her days underground, helping Hank, or training Andy. She was growing stronger, but it took its toll.

Lee knew that Charles' dream of founding a safe haven for mutants was finally being realized, but she often wished that they were alone. That they weren't surrounded by teenagers that they were responsible for. She wished that they could just pack up for a month and go on holiday. However, Lee knew that the mansion would erupt in chaos without either one there to manage it.

Lee didn't know at what point she became the mother hen of a group of mutant teenagers, when her life turned from that of a solitary young woman to that of a school matron figure, but didn't resent it. She had never imagined her life turning out that way, but she wasn't in the least bit disappointed in where she was. She never envisioned working with kids, or building a giant machine designed to enhance one's telepathic abilities, or falling in love with an English, kind-hearted professor. But she was glad that she had gotten tangled up in the mess of the mansion. Lee felt like she finally had a purpose, a role in life. She was doing something good with her time and abilities.

Charles was tired all the time, but he soldiered on. He had responsibilities that could not be shirked. He had a lot on his plate, but he was happy. He was tired, but utterly happy. Every once in a while, he would catch himself smiling for no clear reason. It was usually during a training session with one of the students, or when he spotted Lee across the grounds. He felt fulfilled.

Sometimes, Charles would let that feeling get the better of him. He would make time to use Cerebro, to find more mutants. On the weekends, he would take Lee, and they would travel around New England, collecting more young mutants. He felt like he was doing something good, but sometimes he wished it was just him and Lee. They hardly ever got to spend any time alone together, save for a few stolen moments during the day, or when they would fall asleep during a conversation late at night, or car rides or train rides to recruit another mutant. During those rides, Charles liked to pretend that they were traveling to some remote location to spend a romantic weekend alone together. That was never the case, but Charles promised himself that he would make the time to actually do that sometime in the future.

Charles was driving Lee into the city, to the airport. She was flying to Chicago to find yet another mutant that he had tracked down with the use of the new Cerebro. Hank, Andy, and Lee had completed the monstrous project a week prior. Now that Cerebro was finished, Hank was making plans for a new jet. Until then, Lee was flying commercially. Charles would have gone with her, but the trip was too long, and he couldn't afford to be away from the mansion for so long. He trusted Lee to get the job done on her own. She had proven herself time and time again.

"You'll do beautifully, like you always do," said Charles, giving Lee's hand a reassuring squeeze as they stood outside of the luggage check-in.

"I've come back by myself plenty of times, don't you forget," said Lee, allowing a bit of self doubt to make its way into her mind. She was nervous about traveling so far away from the mansion, and about finding the mutant on her own. Charles would be much too far away to comfort her.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that we try. I know you can do this," he kissed her forehead affectionately. "Now, you're plane's about to leave, and it would not do for you to miss it." Lee ignored Charles' warning and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a kiss.

"I love you, but you really need to get going," he murmured, pulling away from her hesitantly.

"I love you, too," Lee replied. It was the first time either of them had ever spoken those words to each other, and Lee was a bit surprised at how easy it had been. She realized that it was because it was true. With her ex-fiancé, it took ages for her to speak that phrase, and it had been a nightmare saying it. But with Charles, the words just flowed out. It was natural.

Finally, Lee had to leave Charles and rush to her gate to board the plane. As she quickly walked off, she looked over her shoulder one last time to see Charles standing there, smiling, watching her go.

* * *

><p>I'm going to wait few days to post the end. It's written and finished. I just want to wait a while.<p>

(I'm like, legit sad.)


	31. XXX Epilogue

Vignette oneshots will be up in about a week. If you want this story to live on for just a little while longer, throw some suggestions at me.

The song that inspired me to write this story came on shuffle right as I was finishing this up. "Dead Hearts" by Stars. It's about moving forward. I'm considering posting the playlist that got me through this story on my profile page. But until then, thank you so much to everyone who reviewed and read this story. I owe it all to you.

* * *

><p>Charles spent a lot of time in airports, seeing Lee off.<p>

To Lee, it seemed as if she spent more time in airport terminals than she did at the mansion. She talked to cab drivers and flight attendants and strange mutants more than she did with Charles.

Lee's life had turned into some sort of nomadic existence. She lived out of a suitcase. She spent the night in a hotel more nights out of the year than she did at the mansion.

Somewhere, at some point, Lee and Charles had allowed themselves to get swept up in the madness of running a school. They had become too busy for each other. Their lives were no longer their own. Their time was delegated by demanding children and needy mutants.

Charles spent his time cleaning up messes and training young mutants, molding young minds and patiently standing up for mutant rights.

Lee spent her time traveling the country (and eventually the world), spreading the word of Charles Xavier, and sending mutants his way.

There were times that they both missed each other terribly, when phone calls and letters weren't enough. But there was nothing they could do. Their lives weren't their own anymore, a fact that wasn't always so obvious, as they hardly ever had time to reflect.

Their cause was much more important than their relationship.

Over time, their longing to see each other lessened. They had become too busy with their jobs.

But sometimes, Charles liked to wheel himself down to the basement, to Cerebro. He would use the machine that she helped build to find her (the irony wasn't lost on him). He never contacted her, he just wanted to know where she was, what she was doing, if she was doing well. She always remained loyal to him. Even though they didn't speak anymore, she still thought of him, and she still followed him, even from miles and miles away. Apart from his time in Cerebro, the most Charles would see of Lee would be an old photograph of her that he kept in his desk drawer. It was the one of her in the yellow bridesmaids dress at a wedding Charles didn't attend. Lee had left the photos in her old bedroom.

Charles finally found the courage to clean out Raven's old room. Years later, he also eventually found the courage to clean out Lee's old room.

Charles owed everything that the school had become, to her. Lee was responsible for almost all of the students, Cerebro, even the name of the school. She had earned the school several grants, found willing donors, and sent capable teachers to Westchester. She had pulled him from the darkness of betrayal and abandonment, and forced him into action and productivity. She had restored his purpose, and his hope. When he had the time, Charles wondered what his life would have been like if a Swedish woman had never stolen other schools' curriculums, or helped him recruit and train young mutants, had never given him that jump start.

Somewhere along the way, life took hold. Duty took over. Love got pushed to the side for a different time, when they were both a little less busy.

That time never came.


End file.
